Quevedo is a city in

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

located in the

Los Ríos Province Los Ríos () is a province in Ecuador. The capital is Babahoyo. The province was founded on October 6, 1860. Under legislative decree. Babahoyo was made its capital on September 30, 1948. Demographics Ethnic groups as of the Ecuadorian census o ...

. It is the seat of Quevedo Canton, a vibrant community founded in 1943. According to the latest census, Quevedo's population is 173,000. Located at 237 km SW of Quito (Ecuador's capital), or, 183 km NE of Guayaquil (Ecuador's main port). Quevedo is one of the fastest-growing cities in Ecuador and it is mainly known for its agricultural tradition. Quevedo's agroindustrial complex is one of the leading exporters in the world of banana, cacao, passion fruit and coffee bean. In recent years non-agricultural activities have experienced significant progress mainly in the financial and educational sectors. Though set inland, Quevedo's geographic location makes it an important logistics link between the Pacific coastal area's main population centers like

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

, Santo Domingo and

Manta Manta or mantas may refer to: * Manta ray, large fish belonging to the genus ''Manta'' Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * Manta (comics), a character in American Marvel Comics publications * Manta (''Uridium''), a spaceship in the Br ...

and cities in the Andes highlands such as Ambato and

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...

. Because of its location west of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

mountains and right next to the

Vinces River The Vinces River is a river of western Ecuador. See also *List of rivers of Ecuador The rivers of Ecuador are an important part of the nation's geography and economy. Most of the over 2,000 rivers and streamsTerry have headwaters in the Andes mou ...

(a major waterway and tributary to the Pacific Ocean), the city is vulnerable to flooding.

Economy

Quevedo is one of the most important agricultural centers of Ecuador and is the geographical point where all major roads (including the Pan-American highway) in the region intersect. The area surrounding Quevedo mainly produce

bananas A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

, and

soybeans The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu and ...

.''http://www.elcomercio.com/2010-10-07/Noticias/Pais/Noticia-Principal/EC101007P17_QUEVEDO.aspx'', 'Quevedo, productivo y comercial' El Comercio 7 October 2010 The alluvial soils in the region generate excellent harvests year-round. Many banana producers complement their banana plantations with fields that produce corn, soy and rice in the wet season. In the city, this produce is often industrialized into super-market ready products, such as instant-meals, pre-packaged products, noodles and other traditionally Asian foods. In recent years, Quevedo agro-industrial complex has added value to its output by developing a strong presence in the organic product's niche both locally and overseas.

Climate

Quevedo has a tropical wet climate, which, coupled with rich volcanic soils, produces excellent conditions for agriculture.

Education

UTEQ, Universidad Tecnica Estatal de Quevedo, is well known in Ecuador for its program in

Agricultural sciences Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Profession ...

Sports

Club Deportivo Quevedo Club Deportivo Quevedo is an Ecuadorian professional football club based in Quevedo. They currently play in the Ecuadorian Serie B, the country's second division-flight professional league. Current squad Managers * R ...

is the local football team which has played in the Ecuadorian top division.

Culture

Mostly populated by the mestizo ethnic group; Quevedo is also known for its prominent

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

population and has even been called the "

Chinatown A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Austra ...

of Ecuador". This gives it a distinct reputation and cultural feeling in relation to other Ecuadorian cities. Quevedo is also the center of the "montubio" folklore, a sub-culture that emanates from the customs of the early settlers of the region, who lived in the "monte", a word that describes the agricultural fields. The city celebrates its foundation on October 7.

References

External links

{{Authority control Populated places in Los Ríos Province