Lupinus mutabilis Breeding in the Andes of Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia: A Review

Abstract

Lupinus mutabilis, also known as tarwi or chocho, is an important agricultural species that has been cultivated in South America since ancient times. Tarwi is native to the Andean regions of Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador and has very high protein content. Despite its high nutritional value and promotion efforts by regional researchers and breeders, tarwi is not a widely cultivated crop in its center of origin. In this review, we present the work carried out by public breeding programs of L. mutabilis at national agricultural research institutes, universities, and other institutions in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. The main breeding method used in the Andes to improve local landraces has been mass selection to adapt lines to specific environments. At least 25 cultivars or ecotypes have been selected and released over the last 40 years using this breeding system. Nevertheless, breeders are currently struggling to develop new varieties that are high yielding, suitable for mechanized harvesting, have a low content of alkaloids or other anti-nutritional properties, and resistant to anthracnose (Colletotrichum acutatum). Therefore, it is necessary to reassess the potential of this crop and invest in its research to incorporate new techniques and breeding strategies to optimize the development of new varieties in the Andes which address the current cultivation challenges of the species.

Grain Yield, Protein Content, Oil Content, and Vegetative Period of National Tarwi Cultivars (Lupinus Mutabilis Sweet) in Puno, Peru

“…Physiological maturity is one of the most important phenological stages in grain formation in tarwi, where adverse climates could greatly affect and reduce the yields of tarwi cultivars, having a detrimental effect on grain formation, which would imply a change in the content of protein, oil and carbohydrates (Kamphuis et al, 2021). Likewise, Lupinus mutabilis from central and southern Peru are considered to have few branches and are precocious, highlighting an important factor in the edaphoclimatic conditions of each place (Rodríguez-Ortega et al, 2024).…”

“…One of the main problems of tarwi is that it has a long vegetative period, susceptible to frost in the early stages of development and medium productivity per plant and hectare, and the protein, oil and carbohydrate content is not very well known. of carbon, being of great importance for the genetic and agro-industrial improvement of the tarwi, especially due to the rich biodiversity of tarwi, which Peru is home to (Rodríguez-Ortega et al, 2024). In the Peruvian highlands, production is only expected from the central axis of the plant and, in the best of cases, from its primary branches; The adaptation of different ecotypes to Andean conditions is of great importance, because those currently planted, despite their great variability, have more than 319 accessions in the germplasm bank of the National University of the Altiplano, Puno.…”