scholarly journals A Comprehensive Appraisal of the Wild Food Plants and Food System of Tribal Cultures in the Hindu Kush Mountain Range; a Way Forward for Balancing Human Nutrition and Food Security

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5258
Author(s):  
Abdullah Abdullah ◽  
Shujaul Mulk Khan ◽  
Andrea Pieroni ◽  
Aminul Haq ◽  
Zahoor Ul Haq ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Hindu Kush

The tribal belt of the Hindu Kush mountains is famous for its unique culture, ethnography, wild food plants, food systems, and traditional knowledge. People in this region gather wild plants and plant parts using them directly or in traditional cuisine, or sell them in local markets. However, there is a huge lack of documentation of the food system, particularly that related to wild food plants (WFP). In the current study, we focus on the uses and contributions of WFPs in the traditional tribal food system of the Hindu Kush valleys along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border. Ethnobotanical data were gathered through questionnaire surveys of 84 informants, including 69 men and 15 women, belonging to 21 different villages of the chosen area. In tribal societies men and women rarely mix and thus very few women took part in the surveys. We documented 63 WFP species belonging to 34 botanical families, of which 27 were used as vegetables, 24 as fruits, six in different kinds of chutneys (starters), and six as fresh food species. Fruits were the most used part (41%), followed by leaves (24%), aerial parts (24%), seeds (7%), stems (3%), and young inflorescences (1%). The reported uses of Carthamus oxyacantha, Pinus roxburghii seeds, and Marsilea quadrifolia leaves are novel for the gastronomy of Pakistan. The results reveal that WFPs provide a significant contribution to local food systems and play a role in addressing human nutritional needs, which are usually not met through farming practices. The tribal peoples of the Hindu Kush use WFPs for their nutritional value, but also as a cultural practice—an inseparable component of the tribal community’s lifestyle. This important traditional knowledge about the gathering and consumption of WFPs, however, is eroding at an alarming rate among younger generations due to the introduction of fast-food, modernization, and globalization. Therefore, appropriate strategies are imperative not only to safeguard traditional plants and food knowledge and practices, as well as the cultural heritage attached to them, but also to foster food security and thus public healthcare via local wild foods in the region.

scholarly journals Contribution of the Wild Food Plants in the Food System of Tribal Belt of Pakistan; The Pak - Afghan Border Region

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shujaul Mulk Khan ◽  
Abdullah Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Food System ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Public Healthcare ◽  
Wild Food Plants

The tribal belt of Pakistan-the Pak-Afghan border region is famous for its unique culture, ethnography and wild food plants and traditional knowledge. People of these regions gather wild plants for number of purposes including plants or plant parts for direct use, use it in the traditional cuisines and selling in local markets. However, there is huge lack of documentation of food system particularly the Wild Food Plants (WFPs). In current study we have focused on the uses and contributions of the WFPs in the tribal traditional food system. The ethnobotanical data were gathered through questionnaire surveys with Eighty-four informants 69 men and 15 women belonging to 21 different villages. We documented Sixty-three WFP species belonging to 34 botanical families, of which 27 were used as vegetables, 24 as fruits, 6 in different kinds of chutneys (starters) formation and six as fresh food species. Fruits were the mostly used part (40%) followed by leaves (24%), aerial parts (24%), seeds (7%), stem (3%), legume (2%) and young inflorescence (1%). Use of Carthamus oxycanthus & Pinus roxburghii seeds and Marsillea quadrifolia leaves were the novel reports for the gastronomy of Pakistan. The results elucidate that WFPs have a significant contribution in the Tribal Food Systems. Tribal people use WFPs not only due to their nutritional importance but also as a cultural practice - an inseparable component of the tribal communities. This important traditional Knowledge about the consumption of WFPs has been eroding with an alarming speed among the younger generations due to introduction of fast food chains, modernization, and globalization. Therefore, appropriates strategies are imperative not only to safeguard traditional knowledge but also the cultural heritage, food security and hence public healthcare via food supplement in the region.

scholarly journals Shared but Threatened: The Heritage of Wild Food Plant Gathering among Different Linguistic and Religious Groups in the Ishkoman and Yasin Valleys, North Pakistan

Foods ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Abdul Aziz ◽  
Arshad Mehmood Abbasi ◽  
Zahid Ullah ◽  
Andrea Pieroni
Keyword(s):  
Artemisia Annua ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Wild Food Plant ◽  
North Pakistan ◽  
Islamic Faith

A wild food ethnobotanical field study was conducted in the Ishkoman and Yasin valleys, located in the Hindukush Mountain Range of Gilgit-Baltistan, northern Pakistan. These valleys are inhabited by diverse, often marginalized, linguistic and religious groups. The field survey was conducted via one hundred and eighty semistructured interviews to record data in nine villages. Forty gathered wild food botanical and mycological taxa were recorded and identified. Comparative analysis among the different linguistic and religious groups revealed that the gathered wild food plants were homogenously used. This may be attributed to the sociocultural context of the study area, where most of the population professes the Ismaili Shia Islamic faith, and to the historical stratifications of different populations along the centuries, which may have determined complex adaptation processes and exchange of possibly distinct pre-existing food customs. A few wild plants had very rarely or never been previously reported as food resources in Pakistan, including Artemisia annua, Hedysarum falconeri, Iris hookeriana, Lepidium didymium and Saussurea lappa. Additionally, the recorded local knowledge is under threat and we analyzed possible factors that have caused this change. The recorded biocultural heritage could, however, represent a crucial driver, if properly revitalized, for assuring the food security of the local communities and also for further developing ecotourism and associated sustainable gastronomic initiatives in the area.

scholarly journals The hidden Mediterranean diet: wild vegetables traditionally gathered and consumed in the Gargano area, Apulia, SE Italy

2015 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 327-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nello Biscotti ◽  
Andrea Pieroni
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Diet ◽  
Food System ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Economic Changes ◽  
Traditional Environmental Knowledge ◽  
Wild Vegetables ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Culinary Uses

<p>Despite the extensive bio-scientific literature concerning the Mediterranean diet, which emerged in the last three decades, systematic ethnography-centered investigations on a crucial portion of this food system, linked to the traditional consumption of non-cultivated vegetables, are still largely lacking in many areas of the Mediterranean Basin.</p><p>In this research, an ethnobotanical field study focusing on wild vegetables traditionally gathered and consumed locally, was conducted in a few centers and villages located in the Gargano area, northern Apulia, SE Italy, by interviewing twenty-five elderly informants. The folk culinary uses of seventy-nine botanical taxa of wild vascular plants, belonging to nineteen families, were recorded, thus showing a remarkable resilience of traditional environmental knowledge (TEK) related to wild food plants. In particular, approximately one-fourth of the recorded wild vegetables are still very commonly gathered and consumed nowadays, while ten taxa have never been reported in previous ethnobotanical studies conducted in Southern Italy. These findings demonstrate the crucial cultural role played by folk cuisines in preserving TEK, despite significant socio-economic changes that have affected the study area during the past four decades.</p>

Traditional knowledge of wild food plants of Thai Karen and Lawa (Thailand)

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 1277-1299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kittiyut Punchay ◽  
Angkhana Inta ◽  
Pimonrat Tiansawat ◽  
Henrik Balslev ◽  
Prasit Wangpakapattanawong
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants

scholarly journals Overcoming Tribal Boundaries: The Biocultural Heritage of Foraging and Cooking Wild Vegetables among Four Pathan Groups in the Gadoon Valley, NW Pakistan

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 537
Author(s):  
Sheharyar Khan ◽  
Wahid Hussain ◽  
Sulaiman ◽  
Sikandar Shah ◽  
Hidayat Hussain ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Field Survey ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Cultural Analysis ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Vegetables ◽  
Plant Parts ◽  
Biocultural Heritage

The foraging and consumption of wild food plants is a long-standing tradition in many parts of the world and their importance in promoting food security has become more widely debated in recent years. The current study aimed to document, analyze, and interpret the traditional knowledge of non-cultivated vegetables among four Pathan tribes (Alisher Khel, Hadarzai, Haji Khel, and Umarzai) living in the Gadoon Valley, Swabi District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, NW Pakistan, and to evaluate how these practices vary among the considered tribal communities. A total of 104 informants were interviewed via a semi-structured, open-ended questionnaire and group discussions. The field survey was conducted from October 2018 to November 2020. Information about local names, growth habit, used plant parts, food/cooking details, medicinal perceptions, availability season, and market prices were collected. The field survey recorded 51 non-cultivated vegetables belonging to 24 botanical families, for which the frequently used plant parts included young leaves, stems, and flowers. The greatest number of use reports was recorded for Colocasia and the highest cultural index value was recorded for Rumex dentatus; the dominant botanical families were Asteraceae and Fabaceae (six species each). Seven species were found to be sold at local and regional markets. Cross-cultural analysis among the four considered tribes showed that the largest number of species was reported by members of the Hadarzai and Umarzai tribes, although most of the quoted wild vegetables were homogenously gathered among all considered communities, with some more idiosyncratic plant uses among the Umarzai group, who have likely been less affected by the erosion of traditional knowledge or possibly have had less access to traded cultivated vegetables. The novelty of the data was assessed by comparing it with the previously published wild food ethnobotanical literature of Pakistan, which showed fifteen new wild vegetables not yet reported in the NW of the country. The recorded food biocultural heritage should be seriously considered in future local development projects aimed at fostering environmental sustainability and food security.

scholarly journals Enhancing the Glopan Food Systems Framework by Integrating Gender: Relevance for Women in African Agriculture

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8564
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Mkandawire ◽  
Melody Mentz-Coetzee ◽  
Margaret Najjingo Mangheni ◽  
Eleonora Barusi
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Gender Inequalities ◽  
Gender Barriers ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
African Agriculture ◽  
Agriculture And Food ◽  
Systems Framework

Globally, gender inequalities constrain food security, with women often disproportionately affected. Women play a fundamental role in household food and nutrition security. The multiple roles women play in various areas of the food system are not always recognised. This oversight emerges from an overemphasis on one aspect of the food system, without considering how this area might affect or be affected by another aspect. This study aimed to draw on international commitments and treaties using content analysis to enhance the Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Security food systems framework by integrating a gender perspective. The study found that generally, there is a consensus on specific actions that can be taken to advance gender equality at specific stages of the food system. However, governance and social systems constraints that are not necessarily part of the food system, but have a significant bearing on men and women’s capacity to effectively participate in the food system, need to be addressed. While the proposed conceptual framework has some limitations, it offers a foundation on which researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders can begin conceptualising the interconnectedness of gender barriers in the food system.

scholarly journals Local knowledge as a tool for prospecting wild food plants: experiences in northeastern Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrícia Muniz de Medeiros ◽  
Gabriela Maria Cota dos Santos ◽  
Déborah Monteiro Barbosa ◽  
Laílson César Andrade Gomes ◽  
Élida Monique da Costa Santos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Local Knowledge ◽  
Rural Settlement ◽  
Ecological System ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Specific Group ◽  
Xanthosoma Sagittifolium

AbstractThis study aims to provide a simple framework to identify wild food plants with potential for popularization based on local knowledge and perception. To this end, we also characterized the distribution of this knowledge in the socio-ecological system. We developed the study in the rural settlement Dom Hélder Câmara in northeastern Brazil. The species with the greatest potential for popularization considering the attributes accessed from local knowledge and perception were Psidium guineense Sw., Genipa americana L., Xanthosoma sagittifolium (L.) Schott and Dioscorea trifida L.f. However, the high variation in local knowledge on wild food plants suggests that species that are not frequently cited can also be promising. The absence of age or gender-related knowledge patterns indicates that studies for prospecting wild food plants in similar socioecological contexts need to reach the population as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific group.

scholarly journals Wild food plants and fungi sold in the markets of Luang Prabang, Lao PDR

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Łukasz Łuczaj ◽  
Vichith Lamxay ◽  
Khamphart Tongchan ◽  
Kosonh Xayphakatsa ◽  
Kongchay Phimmakong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lao Pdr ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Edible Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Edible Plants ◽  
Important Position ◽  
Open Air Markets

Abstract Background Open air markets hold an important position for ethnobiologists. In Southeast Asia, they are seriously understudied, in spite of their incredible biocultural diversity. In order to fill this gap we recorded plants and fungi sold in the open air markets of Luang Prabang, Lao PDR. Methods The markets were visited 38 times in four seasons: the dry season, early monsoon, mid-monsoon, and end-of-monsoon, at least 8 times per season. All items were photographed and voucher specimens were collected. Fungi were identified using DNA barcoding techniques. Results We recorded 110 species of wild edible plants and 54 species of fungi, including 49 wild-collected species. The sold plants included 86 species of green vegetables, 18 species of fruits and 3 species of flowers. Products from woody species constitute around half of all taxa sold. These include the young shoots of tree leaves, which are used for salads—an interesting feature of Lao cuisine. A large number of extremely rare Russula, with no reference sequences represented in databases or even species unknown to science is present on sale in the markets. Conclusions Luang Prabang markets are some of the richest in species of wild edible plants and fungi in Asia, and indeed in the whole world. It is worth pointing out the exceptionally long list of wild edible mushrooms which are sold in Luang Prabang (and probably elsewhere in Laos). We view the Morning Market of Luang Prabang as a cultural treasure that unites the traditions of eating a large number of living species with very diverse flora and fauna. Measures should be taken to strike a balance between local foraging traditions and nature conservation priorities.

scholarly journals The trauma of no-choice: Wild food ethnobotany in Yaghnobi and Tajik villages, Varzob Valley, Tajikistan

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renata Sõukand ◽  
Julia Prakofjewa ◽  
Andrea Pieroni
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Wild Food Plant ◽  
Forced Resettlement ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
High Level

AbstractDue to global change and the migration crisis both needing rapid attention, there has been growing debate about the drivers of change in the diet of migrants. Our study aimed to evaluate the consequences of forced resettlement on local ecological knowledge related to wild food plants among forcefully resettled Yaghnobi people in Tajikistan. We conducted 49 semi-structured in-depth interviews and recorded 27 wild food taxa and five unidentified folk taxa used by Yaghnobis and Tajiks in the villages surrounding Yaghnob Valley (including families ressetteled from Yaghnob Valley) in central Tajikitsan. The comparision between the two considered groups showed a high level of Tajikisation among Yaghnobis, both those who live alongside Tajiks as well as those living separately. The few families that still have distinct Yaghnobi plant uses are the ones which were given the opportunity to choose the spot in which to relocate and still visit the Yaghnob Valley regularly. On the basis of our study, we suggest that affording a choice of where to relocate is better than no choice, as the loss of motivation also affects the use of wild food plants. Given the pressure of the possible relocation of many groups of people in the light of global change, we suggest focusing efforts on studying similar cases in order to minimize the damage caused to people by relocation. The trauma of forced relocation, even just a few kilometers away, directly or indirectly affects wild food plant use and with this the food security of the community.

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