FAO Digital Media Hub - ECUADOR, 2025. Chulpi, an ancient maize variety

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ECUADOR, 2025. Chulpi, an ancient maize variety

06 July 2025. Cotacachi, Ecuador. Chulpi, an ancient local variety of maize, displayed for sale and trade at the community fair Pachamama Nos Alimenta, which brings together over 150 local women producers. Most producers own land at both high and low altitudes, allowing for diversified grain production.

07/06/2025

Country or Territory Ecuador

Related URL Related FAO Feature Story: https://www.fao.org/newsroom/story/secrets-of-the-andean-chakras/en

UNFAO Source FAO Photo Library

File size 14.40 MB

Unique ID UF1ADTB

Editorial use only. Photo credit must be given. For further information contact: Photo-Library@fao.org

Background Information Kichwa women and their ancestral agricultural knowledge have sustained food security in Ecuador’s highlands for centuries. Their farms, known as chakra, were recognized in 2023 by FAO as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS). Indigenous women like Magdalena are seed guardians, preserving native maize varieties and passing this knowledge to her daughter Verónica.

Climate change-related droughts, floods and pests threaten this system, but with FAO’s support, organizations like UNORCAC work with Kichwa communities to strengthen resilience through the use and exchange of native seeds.