By Bhogtoram Mawroh & Janak Preet Singh
Food, being the basic necessity of every person, is a unique entry point to introduce and discuss the dangers of eroding biodiversity and brings to fore the need to strengthen existing practices and revitalize those that are being forgotten. The process of dialoguing, showcasing, and exchanging local food production, consumption and preparation practices highlights and mainstreams the cultural knowledge and strengths of Indigenous peoples. One of the way by which this can be done is through Farmer’s Markets that promote the Indigenous Food System especially ignored items like wild edibles. Such platforms are very important for the simple fact that what is often missing when discussing North East India and Meghalaya in particular is that these regions are not only a biodiversity hot spot but are very well endowed in terms of agrobiodiversity as well. This was communicated to NESFAS by a Czech researcher – Lukáš Pawera, ethnobotanist from the Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague who had come to Shillong to help design a participatory mapping exercise for documenting the agrobiodiversity of the State. After discussion with the NESFAS team a pilot field work was conducted in Khweng to test the validity of the proposed methodology.
Like many Bhoi villages Khweng is nestled between low lying hills and elongated alluvial valleys. The carpet of yellow in the valley alongside the green hills makes for a picturesque vista. Like the landscape surrounding it the village is mesmerizingly beautiful and the people highly resourceful. During the mini-FGD (Focus Group Discussion) the NESFAS team was able to list more than 140 food plants (crops and their varieties, wild food plants, spices included). From past experiences, NESFAS has been working with the village since 2013, it was very clear that there was, by conservative estimates, a minimum of 10% of plants which were missed. This is rectified when free listing is done with key informants, who in this case are custodian farmers. The final methodology will ensure that a complete profile can be created with all the relevant details covered.
Still the pilot survey brought out that the local landscape had high diversity of crops, particularly vegetables in the home gardens. More remarkable was the fact that there were many wild edible plants that were growing spontaneously just in front of the veranda of the households. Some of the wild edibles that were documented during this pilot survey were trykhang, jatalo, jamahek, jalympu, jawma, jarlut, jajew, jalising jatlar, jajew (rob rob), jajew (ding), jarain, lapong murit, lapong nai, lungsiej, etc. Local people knew about their value and in fact judiciously took care of some varieties that grow along the embankments of the paddy fields. What was most revealing was when the Czech researcher informed those same varieties have almost disappeared from the paddy fields of Indonesia. This was based on his field work in this particular South-East Asian nation. Indiscriminate use of pesticides was the reason behind the loss of these wild edibles from the paddy fields of the Indonesian farmers. Here in Khweng though they were found to be in a very healthy state. Apart from the local varieties of rice and the wild edibles, local fishes are also caught by the people from the streams that flow across their paddy fields meaning that local people were able to consume at least three food categories (grains, vegetables and fish) from the paddy fields itself. The researcher was highly impressed by the agrobiodiversity and remarked that the village has great potential in terms of improving nutrition and food security.
However, when one asks the urban population about the agrobiodiversity and its various products, they are many times unaware about them. This is particularly so in the case of wild edibles. An important reason for it is the hesitancy of the local farmers to share information of such food plants. Like in many parts of the world, these are considered as “poor man’s food”. Such perceptions result in stigma being attached on its consumption. But such plants are important for many reasons. One of the most important attributes of such plants is their potential to act as climate resilient species. In the ongoing FAO study in Nongtraw, East Khasi Hills the community has informed the NESFAS research team that many of the wild edibles found in their landscape are highly climate change resilient, i.e., these plants can withstand multiple stresses. Recurrence of extreme events is the hallmark of climate change and agriculture is particularly vulnerable to such climate regimes. To agriculture’s fate are connected those who depend directly (farmers, traders, manufacturers of food items) and indirectly (general public who are the consumers) on the activity, i.e., the whole of humanity. The domesticated plants of today were in fact the wild varieties of yesterday. Wild edibles as such have a very important role to play for present and future food security of the world.
Wild edibles can also help in improving nutrition. One of the ways to measure a household’s nutrition intake is through Dietary Diversity Score. This is an inexpensive and quick method to assess household food consumption through a 24 hour recall. The responses are analysed by fitting the food items consumed within the ten food groups, viz., grains; white roots and tubers, and plantains; pulses (beans, peas and lentils); nuts and seeds; dairy; meat, poultry and fish; eggs; dark green leafy vegetables; other vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables; other vegetables and other fruits. A person should consume at least five food groups in order to be categorised as having a healthy diet. Wild edibles are an inexpensive and healthy substitute for increasing the food groups in the diet. But at the moment, these are what are referred as Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS).
In Bioversity publication ‘Fighting Poverty, Hunger and Malnutrition with Neglected and Underutilized Species – Needs, Challenges and the Way Forward’ Padulosi, Thompson and Rudebjer (2013) state that “Neglected and underutilized species are those to which little attention is paid or which are entirely ignored by agricultural researchers, plant breeders and policymakers. They are wild or semi-domesticated varieties and non-timber forest species that are not typically traded as commodities”. NUS could be very central in strengthening food security, alleviating poverty, and increasing the resilience and sustainability of farming systems. This is because many NUS are adapted to marginal environments; many NUS are highly nutritious; some NUS have potential for development as novel consumer products to generate income for smallholder farmers and their communities; and NUS are typically embedded within local cultural traditions, such that their greater use could strengthen local identities and contribute to empower marginalized communities. NESFAS along with its partners are working together on improving nutrition and strengthening indigenous food systems in the State of Meghalaya. Under this initiative NUS can play a very important role.
It is with the appreciation of the role that wild edibles and other products from the indigenous food production system can play in improving nutrition and promoting livelihood, NESFAS (North East Slow Food and Agrobiodiversity Society) along with one of its partners, SSC (Social Service Centre), invited their farmer groups to Savio Hall on the 25th July 2018 to sell their produce directly to the consumers without any intermediary taking away their profit. Special emphasis was given on local crops that are a part of the indigenous food system thus promoting livelihood but with an emphasis on food security and nutrition. Many of these were wild edibles are unknown among urban consumers. The response from the consumers was very encouraging. Eight villages’ viz., Mawmuthoh, Mawpyrshong, Rapleng, Jongksha, Lamsain, Laitdiengsai, and Nongtraw took part in this gathering with Khweng being one of them. They brought wild edibles like jali, jatira, jaut, tyrkhang, lungsiej, wang panai, etc. Another very important outcome of the initiative is also making consumers ‘coproducers’ – a term used to describe and highlight the power of the consumer to go beyond a passive role and take an active interest in those who produce our food, how they produce it and the problems they face in doing so. Consumers thus become an integral part of the production process. In this way both the producers and the consumers are empowered. This will be a regular affair with more farming communities poised to be invited in the future.
Bringing consumers (general public) and producers (farmers) together is just one initiative taken by NEFAS and its partners to promote and generate awareness on Indigenous Food Systems and its contribution towards food security, better nutrition, livelihood improvement, and healthy living. At the same time, this provides a platform for farmers to gain a fair price determined by the farmers themselves. This promotes their livelihood as well. NESFAS is fully aware that this is but only a small step. However that also means there is a scope for further growth. Drops don’t make an ocean but what are oceans but millions of drops descending from heaven to cleanse the thirst of the land and the creatures that inhabit it. Without those individual drops there would be no ocean and no life.
(Bhogtoram Mawroh is Senior Associate, Research and Knowledge Management, NESFAS, Shillong and can be reached at [email protected]. Janak Preet Singh is Senior Associate, Livelihood, NESFAS, Shillong and can be reached at [email protected]