Quinoa4Med PRIMA Project
funded by: PRIMA and Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung for German partners
in progress since: 2022
Persons involved:
Jun. Prof. Dr. Sandra Schmöckel, Physiology of Yield Stability (340k), University of Hohenheim
Prof. Dr. Karl Schmid, Crop Biodiversity and Breeding Informatics (350b), University of Hohenheim
Dr. Irene Huber, Research Center for Health Sciences (703), University of Hohenheim
Lukas John, PhD Candidate, Physiology of Yield Stability (340k), University of Hohenheim
In collaboration with:
PI name | Organization | Country |
Sandra SCHMÖCKEL | University of Hohenheim (UHOH) | Germany |
Ouiza ZIDANE-DJERROUDI | University of Kasdi Merbah (UKMO), Department of Biological Sciences, Laboratory of Bio-resources in the Sahara | Algeria |
Raquel IGLESIAS-FERNANDEZ | Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Centre for Plant Biotechnology and Genomics (CBGP) | Spain |
Susana VILARIÑO | ALGODONERA DEL SUR SA (AS) | Spain |
Carmen Tello RAMOS | Moreno Ruiz Hermanos S L (MRH) | Spain |
Didier BAZILE | Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement (CIRAD), CIRAD Biodiversity Advisor & Senior Researcher at UMR SENS | France |
Si Bennasseur ALAOUI | Institut Agronomique et Vétérinaire, Hassan II, Dept. of Production, Protection and Plant Biotechnology (IAV Hassan II) | Morocco |
Abdelbasset BERRICHI | Mohamed Premier University in Oujda (MPUO) | Morocco |
Arafet MANAA | Centre of Biotechnology of Borj-Cédria (CBBC) | Tunisia |
Brief Description:
Quinoa is a pseudo-cereal, initially cultivated in the Andean region. It has gained attention throughout the Mediterranean because it yields well even on marginal soils and is tolerant to drought, soil salinity and other abiotic stresses. Moreover, it is considered among the world’s healthiest foods. Its grains contain a balanced composition of minerals, vitamins, dietary fibre, fats, and high-quality, gluten-free proteins with a balanced amino acid profile. Our vision considers the whole system by enabling successful and widespread agroecological quinoa farming and marketing its products.
Q4M brings together scientific partners and societal stakeholders from five Mediterranean countries (Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spain and France) in collaboration with quinoa and breeding experts from Germany. Together, the consortium will advance climate-resilient quinoa germplasm and upscale quinoa cultivation and valorisation in an integrated approach. Guided by National priorities and reinforced by a multi-stakeholder network, we will demonstrate the power and benefits of agroecological quinoa farming at twelve distinct multi-agroecosystem demo sites. We will use various crop combinations under varying agronomic regimes facing diverse climate and soil conditions.
Main objectives:
1. Breed/establish multi-purpose quinoa varieties better adapted to saline, marginal Mediterranean soils, resilient to climate change, reducing post-harvest processing, and enriching crop diversity for sustainable agricultural management.
2. Establish zero-waste valorisation chains/nets for quinoa delivering affordable gluten-free food products and other non-foods.
3. Provide guidance, support and a networking platform for stakeholders.