Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa willd.) and its relationship with agroclimatic characteristics: A colombian perspective

Abstract

A diversity of crops of agri-food interest are produced in the Colombian highlands, including quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.), an annual herbaceous plant with white, yellow, red or black seeds, containing between 12% and 21% protein. It is an important source of lysine and methionine. Historically, this plant has played a fundamental role in human nutrition, due to its multiple benefits for disease prevention and treatment. Salinity is the abiotic stress most studied in quinoa; however, the development of this crop on all continents has led to the study of other factors, such as cold and heat, resulted by the increase in weather patterns. This review describes the progress in the temperature effects, photoperiod, atmospheric CO2 concentration and agronomic aspects on the growth and development of quinoa, as well as compositional characteristics of the seeds and their prospective related to the agroclimatic diversity of Colombia.