(Lima, 16 October 2012) Peru commemorated World Food Day one day earlier than its international counterparts, although the seemingly odd decision actually reflected a profound understanding of the country’s agricultural past and present. Monday 15 October marked the International Day of Rural Women and also coincided with the beginning of a week dedicated to social inclusion promoted by the Peruvian government. It also marked the launch of the 4th National Agricultural Census, which will seek to gather information on the Andean nation’s diverse agricultural producers, from production figures to living conditions of women in the sierra.
First Lady Nadine Heredia, along with representatives of civil society and international development institutions, including the FAO representative, lent her support to the Ministry of Agriculture during the event, which highlighted the importance of agriculture in ensuring nutritional quality. CIP participated via its IssAndes project, whose Coordinator in Peru, Miguel Ordinola, led the First Lady and participants through a lively exhibition featuring performing actors who showcased Peruvian staples of high nutritional value like colorful corn cobs, cacao and pseudo grains like quinoa, a tour that ended with a tasting of delicious treats offered by the culinary school Le Cordon Bleu.
IssAndes supports such initiatives as it focuses on the contribution to food security and nutrition of vulnerable rural Andean households. For this reason, the innovation is applied towards potatoes, particularly native Andean potatoes, identifying the content of macro-and micronutrients, antioxidants and functional components of these biodiverse tubers and mentioning their contribution to nutrition, human health and income, for these households.
Photos by Grace Remington