quinoa, traditional agriculture, and you

"in the united states quinoa has found a market in restaurants, health food stores, and supermarkets. it sells fro 'gourmet' ( read foodie ) prices...increased foreign demand for quinoa has not always meant increased production within the andes. ( reportedly supplies have remained stable while the price has increased)." from " lost crops of the incas"______________"Quinoa’s global success is not necessarily good news for local consumers, who could lose a key staple of their diets and be forced to consume cheaper, less nutritious products. Complaints about the high price of quinoa are frequently heard on the streets of La Paz. Ten years ago, a kilo cost US$ 0.16; today it costs 10 times more, or approximately US$ 1.15." world bank. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2014/01/06/quinua-llega-hasta-la-nasa-pero-se-aleja-de-los-consumidores-andinos ______________quinoa is certainly in the supermarket...i found it this morning...it is a cereal grain high in protein content which is why it is a staple in andean cultures...it compliments legumes by supplying amino acids they lack and so balances the vegetable protein in indigenous diets...it is also one of the super foods" that are supposed to restructure western diets to a healthier level ( if, indeed, "smoky bacon" ( naturally flavored) quinoa isn't intended to disguise its healthy taste, if not negate anything healthy about it at all )...so the foodies have latched onto it and the price reflects that ...the "smoky bacon" business would run about $8.33 a pound ( $3.78 a kilo ) and the stuff with the "organic" label goes for $9.36 a pound ( $4.28 a kilo ) and this demand has clearly driven up the price in the localities where it is produced where it "...is now primarily a food of campesinos and poorer classes." forcing them to consume cheaper ( and, probably, less nutritious ) foods...it is a cash crop in the andes however...that is undeniable..however the move is on to move production to other areas ( the u.s. and canada ) to cash in on those "gourmet prices"...leaving the indigenous without a source of cash flow and ( once monsanto gets into the act ) doubtlessly higher prices for seed..it is how food is "globalized' and indigenous traditional agriculture is destroyed...i don't eat quinoa...i loathe a foodie...i will not be one.