Genomic diversity among quinoa varieties

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The burgeoning demand for quinoa seeds and functional food products has increased rapidly over the past five years, causing an outstripping of supply from its native origins of Bolivia and Peru. In 2013, Canadian sales increased by 58%, with Ontario currently importing over $33 M of quinoa for use as a cereal alternative and functional food ingredient (Statistics Canada, 2014). Katan Kitchens, an Ontario-based company, along with industry support, has proven that competitive quinoa yields are achievable in Ontario to augment the issues of quality and supply currently facing imports from South America. In order to assure purity, quality, traceability and intellectual property (brand) protection throughout the entire value chain, the company is now seeking to explore molecular variation in their Ontario quinoa varieties and the subsequent development of molecular markers that could be used to identify and protect Ontario varieties of quinoa; this will allow the development and commercialization molecular diagnostic tools that could detect Ontario quinoa varieties and distinguish them from imported products, thus allowing for a unique Ontario branding opportunity for Katan Kitchens. Ontario and Canadian agriculture will benefit from this initiative, as it will contribute to the integrity of research and production of new and innovative crops on Ontario soils. The model for this system to identify if quinoa DNA intellectual property protection is possible can be applied to other new, innovative crops as they are introduced to Ontario agriculture, which will help protect the integrity of crops produced in Canada.