ICBA, Pakistani firm sign quinoa cooperation deal

The International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) and Kinwa Foods, a private-sector company in Pakistan, signed a collaborative agreement in Dubai, the UAE, on May 29, 2016.

This collaboration is aimed at promoting quinoa in Pakistan so as to scale up its production and processing for smallholder farmers. As part of this collaboration, ICBA will provide technical know-how on production of quinoa and knowledge, mentoring and support to medium-sized farms to ensure sustainable growth in quinoa production in Pakistan.

The agreement underlines growing interest on the part of private-sector companies around the world, in particular in developing countries, to invest in and promote sustainable agricultural solutions for food security and nutrition.

Quinoa, a food crop known only in specific circles until several years ago, has taken center stage as a future-proof solution to global food security. But, despite the growing global recognition of quinoa’s potential and positive research outcomes in pilot studies, there are still many constraints and issues to be addressed before quinoa becomes a crop of choice in marginal areas. The three-day international conference will discuss major challenges and opportunities across the value chain. The overarching objective of the conference is to understand the global status of quinoa, challenges and opportunities in scaling up production, markets, food safety, nutrition, partnership and way forward.

As part of this collaboration, ICBA and Kinwa Foods also signed a sponsorship agreement for the coming International Conference: Quinoa for Future Food and Nutrition Security in Marginal Environments, which will be jointly organized by ICBA and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on December 6-8, 2016, in Dubai.