Maca in Peru, Part 1: Lima & Cusco

Bienvenidos a Perú, and greetings from Cusco, the spiritual heart of South America.

I'm here to investigate the uses and meanings of the celebrated maca root in its country of origin.  If you're unfamiliar with maca, that may change shortly.  It is enjoying a renaissance as a dietary supplement and general health food here in Perú, and is becoming increasingly well known as a superfood in affluent countries throughout the world.

While humble in appearance and rather unusual in taste (it has a slightly sweet, malty flavor), this rustic root has great significance in a country proud of its ancient traditions, its rich biodiversity, and its distinctive mezcla (mixing) of cultures.

Fresh maca roots for sale in the San Pedro Market, Cusco, Perú

Background to Maca: History and Current Popularity

Of course the history of maca starts long before there was such a thing as the country of Perú, or even the Incan Empire for that matter.  Maca has been eaten in the Andean highlands since at least 1900 BC.  At first it was gathered from the wild, and eventually the plant became cultivated extensively in the puna around Lake Junín.

What really makes maca such a fascinating plant, and what has drawn me to Perú to study it, is its ability to grow at extreme altitudes where the cultivation of other edible plants is impossible.  Maca thrives at a dizzying 4,000 metres above sea level, which is enough to make any sensible plant, animal, or human more than a little queasy.  But perhaps it is this very fact that contributes to its nutritional density, for it must survive in an incredibly harsh climate.  

Maca has long been a staple food in the Junín region, and during pre-Colombian and early colonial times it was traded widely.  Under Spanish rule, maca was used to pay taxes, and was also fed to Spanish livestock (and humans) in order to increase fertility at high altitudes.  Maca has long held a reputation for enhancing fertility, and it is, in part, this property that has contributed to its current popularity.

Although widely traded in the early Colonial Period, maca disappeared entirely from mention in any literary sources during the 19th and early 20th centuries.  Only in the 1960s did it achieve any recognition again, and only by a small number of botanists.  By 1980 its area of cultivation may have been as small as 15 hectares, and concerns regarding its possible extinction were raised.

However during the late 1970s and early 1980s, as a few scientific studies confirming maca's fertility-enhancing properties were published, the plant suddenly began to receive renewed attention.  Over the next thirty years, maca rather rapidly transformed from a very localized staple to a global superfood.

Maca in Lima and Cusco

Within Perú, maca has become an important supplement and can be found it various forms in nearly every market, supermarket, and corner store.  Over the past few weeks I've spent time in Lima and Cusco, meeting with maca researchers and studying Spanish.  I've also begun documenting maca wherever I find it, taking photographs and recording its various forms and prices.

I've found whole, fresh maca roots in some surprising places, including a large supermarket in Lima, a more traditional market made up of independent stalls in Lima, and the large San Pedro Market in Cusco.

Fresh maca root in Metro Supermercado, Lima

I've only seen dried maca roots at a few stalls in the San Pedro Market, despite reading that this is the most common form.  Maca powder, or harina de maca, is widely available, either in bulk at the San Pedro Market or in expensive packets in supermarkets and small corner stores.

Dried maca roots with dried san pedro, palo santo, and other local medicinal/spiritual plant products

Maca flour along with an array of quinoas and other Andean grains

A large range of maca candies, liquors, and other processed goods are found nearly everywhere, sometimes mixed with other native health foods such as coca and quinoa.  A vegetarian cafe in Cusco serves maca rolls, while a touristic pizza restaurant in Lima offers a maca-quinoa pizza base.

Maca and Peruvian Identity

Perú is a country with a strong culinary culture.  There are two aspects to this gastronomic awareness: a long history of consumption of an incredibly wide array of important edible and medicinal plants that are native to the country, and the influence of the Nuevo Andino food movement, which has brought a lot of positive attention to these native foodstuffs.

It is common to see maca, quinoa, coca, native potatoes, and other indigenous foods together on restaurant menus.  Products made from these ingredients also appear side by side on the shelves of supermarkets, corner stores, and health food shops.  

To what degree does the association of these native foodstuffs with each other, as well as their prevalence, have to do with a sense of national identity and pride, and to what degree does it have to do with the association of the above plants with health?  In other words, is there a difference in the conception of these superfoods here in Perú than in other countries?  Does the fact that they are native make them more celebrated?  My hypothesis is that more than simply being health foods, they provide a way for Peruvians to feel connected to an ancient past, to reclaim or rediscover knowledge that for centuries had been suppressed.  In my next entry I'll explore these ideas further.