Producción y comercialización de yacón (smallanthus sonchifolius) en comunidades rurales del noroeste argentino

yacon (smallanthus sonchifolius), the pre-hispanic andean tuber is a plant of 1.5 to 3 m high. it reaches maturity in 6-7 month when the altitude is medium or even one year when at high altitudes. the tuber grows throughout the andes from ecuador to northwest argentina (salta and jujuy). in this last province it is a product of great potential, whose cultivation has been promoted over the past few years, slightly increasing the number of producers interested in this crop. it contains fos (fructooligosacarides) of low molecular weight and due to the small amount of calories it is attractive and seems to be good for overweight people. row yacon shelf life is about 15-20 days in environmental conditions. the objective of this work was to determine the factors affecting primary production and to determine the adequate mechanisms to optimize the results, thus studying in depth those aspects related to the added value and the study of the yacon and sub products culture commercialization. the main results show that the yacon produced in jujuy has different characteristic than the other andean tubers. it has greater water content and its morphology is different than the others. most of this crop is sold as fresh; however, a few small scale products are made by using yacon and are sold in the local market.