Ancient Mexican grain cultivated in Australia for authentic tortillas

La Tortilleria, a Mexican food company, has successfully harvested a commercial crop of blue corn after six years of research and development. This allows them to produce authentic, traditional tortillas.

“I just really wanted those blue corn tortillas that you find in the small towns in Mexico and the villages,” said La Tortilleria co-founder Gerardo Lopez. “As far as we can tell … we are the first ones to develop a crop that we can use for tortilla-making outside of Mexico.”

Lopez’s desire to recreate a cherished childhood memory – enjoying blue corn quesadillas after mountain climbs in Mexico – spurred the project.

Bringing the grain to Australia presented significant challenges, including navigating strict Australian quarantine and biosecurity regulations. With funding from CSIRO and collaboration with researchers at Federation University, the company managed to cultivate the crop. Initially, only 20 seeds survived the import process.

Trials began in Victoria, with early yields proving small. However, the harvest in March of this year showed considerable promise, with machinery collecting “tonnes and tonnes and tonnes of corn.”

Australian plant breeding scientist Gururaj Kadkol, with 40 years of experience, joined the project in 2023 to develop a blue corn variety suited to Australian conditions. He helped create a variety yielding approximately six to seven tonnes per hectare.

Blue corn’s distinctive blue color comes from anthocyanins, antioxidants also found in blueberries. Kadkol noted, “[Blue corn] has got the best anthocyanin content … it gives some great health benefits.”

Lopez described the flavor of tortillas made with the Australian-grown blue corn as “nutty and earthy,” adding, “It not only tastes [like Mexico], it smells like Mexico.”

La Tortilleria is committed to honoring the traditions associated with blue corn. “There’s thousands of years of this tradition. There’s all of this that has come with this crop. We’re responsible to make sure that we continue to honour those traditions and do it the right way,” Lopez said.

Future plans include nutritional testing and exploring opportunities in the health food market and potential export. The company hopes to benefit both Australian farmers and consumers.