Heritage Beans from Tamoa

For millennia, farmers in Mexico have grown corn in milpas: with beans, squash and other identity crops.

Families select corn with strong stems to support climbing beans, allowing them access to light. These beans help improve soil health by fixing nitrogen, as the squash adds phosphorus to the soil and provides shade to reduce moisture loss and prevent harmful weed growth.

Together, the milpa’s harvest provides all the food groups and vitamins needed for a healthy human diet and is a nutritional lifeline for local and indigenous communities. Plus, it is the key to a biodiverse ecosystem with climate change resilience as well as a noble contributor to the family economy.

The Milpa System is the key to thriving ecosystems and food sovereignty.