Creole Hens and Ranga-Ranga: Campesino Foodways and Biocultural Resource-Based Development in the Central Valley of Tarija, Bolivia

Abstract

Biocultural heritage-based products, including regional specialty foods, are increasingly part of sustainable rural development strategies. While export-oriented biocultural products are often the most visible, we examine the role of campesino gastronomic heritage in the Central Valley of Tarija, Bolivia, as a case study of a local market-centered biocultural resource-based development strategy reflected in an alternative agri-food network. We develop a biocultural sustainability framework to examine this network from ecological, economic and sociocultural perspectives. Data are drawn from interviews (n = 77), surveys (n = 89) and participant observation, with primary and secondary producers of traditional and new products, as well as restaurant owners, market vendors and local consumers. We find that campesino biocultural heritage and the alternative agri-food network surrounding it represent an influential territorial project that underpins many household economies, particularly for women. We conclude that the relatively small investments by local governments to promote campesino gastronomic heritage are having positive ripple effects on small-scale producer livelihoods and on biocultural sustainability. We suggest that further support to increase market access and reduce other barriers to participation in alternative food networks will likely increase the options and benefits available to small-scale producers mobilising campesino gastronomic heritage within the local economy.

Searching for Germane Questions in the Ethnobiology of Food Scouting

“…Food scouting in ethnobiology involves participatory research aimed at documenting and retrieving the food heritage of local communities, entailing a process of local consciousness rising of the unique and diverse local food resources (Pieroni et al 2021b). It can act as a starting point to create participatory gastronomy-centered projects that can enhance the food sovereignty of rural communities (Turner et al 2016) and prevent the loss of traditional and indigenous knowledge (Nabhan, Walker, and Moreno 2010). Moreover, as Nolan and Pieroni (2014) highlighted in a special issue of the Journal of Ethnobiology, traditional knowledge in local food systems can play a crucial role in the mitigation of food insecurity.…”