[CH] From today's Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper - Chimayo
Raven (ravenseeking@gmail.com)
Mon, 24 Oct 2005 15:59:27 -0600
Project hopes to spur comeback of near-extinct chile strain
By Brandon Garcia | The New Mexican
October 24, 2005
Farmers, preservationists and government officials met Sunday to form
a plan to save Chimayó's famous red chile.
The chile, grown locally since the 17th century, is close to
extinction. But if they get their way, Chimayó red might not only make
a comeback, it might wind up listed as a featured ingredient on the
swankiest menus in the country, like the Meyer lemon, the Vidalia
onion or the Key lime.
Marie Campos of the Santa Fe Institute for Native Hispanic Culture has
been working on the Chimayó Chile Project since April. She said that
although the chile has been famous for nearly 100 years, she's only
found five Chimayó families that grow the local strain.
While there are plenty of red chile products that carry the Chimayó
label, most aren't grown there, said Rick Homans, the state's
secretary for economic development. The attempt to trademark Chimayó
chile "is the most exciting endeavor in the state, currently," he
said.
"People with no relation to Chimayó are taking the name and using it
to make a lot of money," he said.
The consortium wants to change that. If it succeeds, only chile grown
locally with a pure strain would be labeled Chimayó, Homans said.
And if they're granted a trademark, Chimayó farmers stand to make a
bundle. In general, Homans said, specialty goods sell for five to 10
times as much as regular produce, and chefs in major culinary Meccas
are attracted to them.
To get there will be a challenge.
Campos and Chimayóans are discussing how to restore long-neglected
acequias and grow chile on land owned by farmers too old to tend to a
field full of crops.
The institute has also formed a partnership with Santa Fe County to
grow chile on 7 acres of public land behind the Santuario de Chimayó.
According to the plan, experienced local farmers will raise chile
there, showing the process to younger farmers so they can do it
themselves, Campos said.
Eventually, she said, the county might build a processing plant to
introduce even more jobs to Chimayó.
But that seems a long way off. The group's first priority is to
harvest as much chile seed as possible. Right now, Campos said, there
isn't enough seed to support the endeavor. "That's how low its
dwindled. Those that have it are holding on tight. The chile's almost
extinct."
If things go well, next year's harvest on the public land -- and the
harvest on five private farms the institute has contracted -- will be
enough to grow 23 acres of chile for the next harvest. Campos admitted
it's a very ambitious goal.
But the project has attracted the attention of Sen. Jeff Bingaman,
D-N.M., who recently pledged his support, and might gather steam.
Besides, Campos and Homans said, it's worth it. "This species is
unique. There's no other chile like it genetically," Campos said.
In the 1800s, Chimayó red became famous from Colorado to Mexico and
nearly all Chimayó families grew it, she said.
But when the Los Alamos National Laboratories opened in the 1943, many
farmers took jobs there instead. Chile production gradually waned
despite the crop's fame, she said.
But the Chimayó soil and climate also play a role. "You won't get the
same taste or quality if you take the Chimayó seed and plant it in
Hatch," Homans said.
Without the preservation effort, he said, "this could have been lost forever."
Contact Brandon Garcia at 995-3826 or at bgarcia@sfnewmexican.com.