News headlines spouting the popularity of Peru's superfoods and fruits in foreign countries are ever-present, and the proof is in the numbers.

According to the Peruvian Association of Exporters (Adex), agricultural exports amounted to US$ 2.5 billion in just the first half of 2014. This great earning, based off of the performance between January and July, can be credited mainly to Peruvian fruits which experienced a near doubling (48.3% growth) in shipments, says Adex. Although Peru is experiencing international success, much of the demand is stemming from the Unites States.

Despite the number of key world leaders expected to be absent from the U.N. secretary-general's world leaders' summit on climate change this month, the incoming president of the next round of global warming negotiations predicts success.

Peruvian Environment Minister Manuel Pulgar-Vidal told ClimateWire that he is not overly concerned by reports that the leaders of India, China, Australia and Germany are reportedly sending ministers to the Sept. 23 summit in New York. He argued that those countries are nevertheless engaged in the climate talks and said he expects the leaders who do attend to help propel the debate around a new global agreement to be signed in 2015.

Federal officials on Friday announced the return of nine paintings by the 18th century Mexican artist Miguel Cabrera to Peru, six years after they were stolen from a church in Lima, the Peruvian capital.

The paintings had been smuggled out of Peru for trafficking on the international art market, the authorities said. But eight were discovered in 2009, at an auction house in Cedar Falls, Iowa, consigned by an unnamed art dealer.

Peru's Defense Minister, Pedro Cateriano, reassured head of Russia's Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, Alexander Fomin, of his commitment to finish the construction of La Joya helicopter manufacturing plant.
 

Mistura is a food festival that goes on every year around September. It started out pretty small - around 30,000 turned up when it started out (called Per�, Mucho Gusto) in 2008 and now, in its seventh edition, it's huge: 350,000 came last year and around half a million are expected this year. It's the biggest and most important gastronomy fair in all of Latin America, with chefs from around the world giving talks and live demonstrations, more than 200 restaurants from all over Peru serving up wonders, as well as pretty much every ingredient you can find in Peru (and there are a LOT of them) for sale in the Gran Mercado, so you can have a go at reproducing some of the dishes you tried at the fair. There are also live concerts, parades, and celebrities to spot. 
 

Latin America's biggest food festival opened its doors to the public on Friday, bringing together chefs, restaurant owners, farmers and everyone else in the food business from across Peru and other parts of the world.
 

It�s no wonder why Carlo Petrini was chosen to be the gastronomic event�s 2014 guest of honor. Founder of the Slow Food movement, Petrini�s philosophy on food and culture coincides perfectly with the festival�s theme of "eat tasty, eat healthily, eat Peruvian".

"It's very important that Peru and Latin America have a pride in their heritage, for this fantastic land, its biodiversity and for its ancient civilization with great knowledge," stated the cultural anthropologist.