Traditional and Indigenous Fruits and Vegetables for Food System Transformation

Abstract

Fruit and vegetable consumption is recommended in numerous food-based dietary guidelines and forms a key recommendation in many international statements related to healthy diets. There are thousands of fruit and vegetable species from which to choose, but despite this abundance from nature populations in most countries neither produce nor consume the recommended daily amounts of fruits and vegetables. There is enormous potential to better incorporate the wealth of diverse fruit and vegetable species and varieties into food systems. Known and preserved by indigenous communities, these hidden food treasures can foster collaborative research and learning. This perspective from the Task Force on Traditional and Indigenous Food Systems and Nutrition of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS) highlights five key actions that can be taken by individuals, communities and nations to reshape dialogue about traditional and indigenous fruits and vegetables to benefit people and planetary ecosystems.

Co-Designing Research for Sustainable Food Systems and Diets with Aboriginal Communities: A Study Protocol

“…To mitigate the problems associated with this and achieve the sustainable development goals, international organizations and experts recommend increasing plant-based food consumption due to its lesser impact on the environment coupled with the associated health benefits [ 15 , 16 ]. Studies also report that revitalizing Indigenous food systems is crucial to face the global syndemic [ 17 , 18 , 19 ]. Indigenous people know native species such as fruits and vegetables that are abundant in nature, counting 1097 edible species worldwide, which can contribute to a more diverse diet and can adapt to difficult environmental conditions such as poor-quality soil and cold/hot weather.…”

“…Indigenous people know native species such as fruits and vegetables that are abundant in nature, counting 1097 edible species worldwide, which can contribute to a more diverse diet and can adapt to difficult environmental conditions such as poor-quality soil and cold/hot weather. Moreover, these species have demonstrated good resistance to pests and diseases [ 17 ]. Traditional plant-based foods also have health benefits such as antihypertensive, antihyperglycemic and antidyslipidemic properties, making them an excellent tool for combating diet-linked chronic diseases [ 18 ].…”

Aboriginal Food Practices and Australian Native Plant-Based Foods: A Step toward Sustainable Food Systems

“…Integrating Australian native plant-based foods into current diets and food systems and revitalising Indigenous food systems may be a way to support healthy and sustainable diets and food systems [22]. According to Sarkar et al [23], the reincorporation of native plant-based foods and traditional food practices are essential strategies to face climate change and diet-linked chronic diseases.…”

“…For First Nations peoples, food is connected to their history, identity, and land, and it is part of their social, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing [24,25]. Studies worldwide and in Australia show the importance of native plant-based foods for sustainable food systems and diets due their nutrient and antioxidant content and their high tolerance to environmental stress compared to Western food [22,[26][27][28][29]. This scoping review aims to identify and describe Aboriginal food practices and the Australian native plant-based foods and their social, environmental, and economic impacts to sustainable food systems.…”

Constructing Micro-Landscapes: Management and Selection Practices on Microbial Communities in a Traditional Fermented Beverage

“…Traditional or local knowledge commonly includes complex bodies of information on the ecological context, relationships and behavior of the elements used as food, extensive repertoires of preparation procedures, as well as about their relationships with customs, taboos, rituals, and other cultural aspects (Nabhan, 2010;Tamang, 2010;Ratcliffe et al, 2019). All these biocultural facets can be visualized through the diversity of food products and practices related to it, and provide basic notions about what is edible, where and when edible elements are available, the way these should be harvested, and how they can be improved by cooking, roasting, fermenting, or making it harmless (Lévi-Strauss, 2012;Ratcliffe et al, 2019;Tamang et al, 2020Tamang et al, , 2021Tsafrakidou et al, 2020;Fernández-Llamazares et al, 2021;Gadaga et al, 2021;Kennedy et al, 2021).…”