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ECUADOR, 2025. Type of corn grown and locally harvested

07 July 2025. Cumbas, Ecuador. Maíz bola erutuco, harvested by Ecuadorian farmer Magdalena Laine. She is a guardian of a wide variety of native Andean seeds. ©FAO/Johanna Alarcón. Editorial use only. Copyright ©FAO.

07/07/2025

Country or Territory Ecuador

Credit © FAO /

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 10.13 MB

Unique ID UF1ADOH

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.