Abstract

Between October 2017 and July 2019, researchers from the Desert Agriculture area of the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources of the Arturo Prat University, executed the project “Diversification of the agricultural offer in the Province of Tamarugal through the introduction of the crop of Saffron (Crocus sativus L) in the Chilean desert”, an initiative funded by the Innovation Fund for Competitiveness, FIC-R Tarapacá, through the Foundation for Agrarian Innovation (FIA). In this way, the cultivation of saffron unknown to the Chilean desert and especially for the Pampas of Tamarugal, was a great research challenge for the team of Agricultural Engineers and Biotechnology Engineers that formed this group of professionals. Thus we seek to answer the questions, how will saffron adapt to desert conditions? And what technical improvements do you need to optimize your production? For this, in collaboration with farmers, trials were set up in different areas of the Pampa del Tamarugal, starting from the north in the Bajo Soga sector; then, with plots in La Tirana, La Huayca, Canchones and Pica; and in the southern sector, in Pintados. The results of these studies showed us that saffron is a crop that adapts to the conditions of the Chilean desert, and that it is a profitable alternative for family or smallholder agriculture. However, this work also realized that for success the association between producers, services and institutions that promote and provide technical assistance is essential. These great achievements would not have been possible without the collaborative work, both with the entities that created and financed this project, as well as with the farmers who dared to realize this great challenge. It is in this context, that I wish to thank the great work carried out by the executing team of this initiative, who with a visionary look have opened with their research new possibilities for agriculture in the desert. As Universidad Arturo Prat, state and regional entity, we will continue to be committed to the development of Tarapacá, so we will continue to contribute in the field of research and technical assistance, with farmers and other entities. Today we can transform the Pampa del Tamarugal into a saffron producing area, considered the most expensive spice in the world, thus generating a regional development pole that will allow farmers to access a new source of resources to improve their quality of life and Continue to dare to dream.