Globalizing Quinoa: Constructing Food Desires & Indigenous Food Tropes

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Isabel P. B. Fêo Rodrigues

Abstract


This essay discusses the entangled trajectory of quinoa’s globalization in the late 20th century examining selective narratives designed to entice a type of virtuous consumption whereby one can simultaneously satiate the desire for authentic foods and for ethical eating.  As this pseudo grain became uprooted from the Andes and replanted across different geographies, it has gained new consumers enticed by the allure of ingesting the ancient Incan “super food” packaged in indigenous authenticity. Allegedly, quinoa is not only heathier than other grains, but its consumption also creates an ethical bridge between what we have on the table and what small farmers in the distant Andes have been cultivating for centuries.  Unlike other Andean crops, quinoa has reached Western tables and global markets almost instantaneously undermining any desire for slowly ingesting authenticity. As soon as consumers realized what quinoa is—it was no longer from the Andes. 


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Lead Essays