Quinoa initiative
The strong interrelation between agriculture and climate change is now well accepted as one of the key factors to consider for sustained food production and nutrition security for the fast-growing world population. Non-conventional stress-tolerant crops such as quinoa can play a central role in sustaining agricultural productivity and food security under a changing climate, particularly in marginal areas. Quinoa´s great adaptability to climate variability and its tolerance to salinity and water stress makes it an excellent alternative crop in the face of climate change.
The initiative is a follow-up of the recommendations made by the governments of beneficiary countries of projects implemented by FAO in the framework of the action plan of the 2013 International Year of Quinoa (IYQ). National authorities as well as direct beneficiaries have requested of FAO the scaling up of the achievements for the development of quinoa in their respective regions and countries.
This initiative will be coordinated by FAO in collaboration with the Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD), the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) and the Global Framework on Water Scarcity in Agriculture (WASAG).