Maca

Maca is the superfood of the South American Incas, who were already using it over 2,000 years ago, and belongs to the cruciferous family. This hardy cress-like plant seemingly effortlessly withstands wind, cold and intense UV radiation, and prefers to grow in the Andes at around 4,000 m altitude. Cultivation remains essentially confined to South America to this day, as the climatic conditions there are difficult to reproduce and harvesting at such altitudes is very complicated and arduous. As an adaptation to the strong winds, the plant only grows to about 20 cm tall. It also forms tuberous, bright yellow roots to store water, which are used to produce maca-based dietary supplements.