Previously we used Quinoa in our products that were imported from South America. White Quinoa. Bolivia to be exact. (Never been there, had to look it up on maps.google)
We were using it because it was easy for us to get our hands-on. However after a while we found out that it was one of our more expensive ingredients, the reason why we looked further and found an environmentally sustainable, better, and cheaper alternative.
We get our Quinoa from Holland… The Netherlands. Actually it is grown on a piece of land that used to be ‘water’ a few decades ago: Flevoland.
The person I talked to, Corne, also told me about their farm and the production. His father produces the Quinoa completely according to environmentally sustainable methods that are fully traceable and controllable.
In their about us page, Corne tells about the process of selection of the Quinoa seeds they had to go through to find a suitable race that would grow and yield great results in Holland. It took them several years before they had found a suitable candidate which they grow and harvest since 2015.
You can read on their website, where you can also buy Holland – Quinoa, why their quinoa is friendly to the environment, how the whole process of growing and harvesting are bio-certified.
I asked Corne what was different in Quinoa Holland compared to other Bio certified quinoa imported from South America. He told me Quinoa Holland is whole grain because the outer layer is preserved. The seeds are not bleached to make it softer and easier to prepare as rice.
He could tell that his restaurant customers preferred Quinoa Holland because the whole-grain had more flavor to it.
Oh… and does this whole-grain Dutch grown Quinoa Holland quinoa taste better than the one from Bolivia? The answer is a fully affirmative: Definitely.
There is more smell, taste, and flavor to this quinoa compared to our previous quinoa. Not only compared to our previous quinoa but also quinoa we have consumed elsewhere.
After our short chat/mail exchange with Corne, my decision was made and I decided to use Quinoa Holland in Powder Matter. And even consider increasing the amount of quinoa in our products.
We put it in Powder Matter 2.5 Original already. If you want to get a small bag of Quinoa Holland for yourself, get over to their website. On their website they also have published a list of delicious recipes to prepare with Quinoa.
Powder Matter – Balanced & Complete
