Traditional gathering of wild vegetables among the Luo of Western Kenya - A nutritional anthropology project

1. A bit of clarification is needed concerning the terminology. By "traditional" we mean something that has been an integrated part of a culture for about a generation or more. The term "wild" alludes to something being procurable in nature ( though some of the vegetables in this study were both wild and cultivated). A "food item" is anything edible ( in this article we are concentrating on plants, but insects belong to this category as well). According to Southgate ( 2000: 349), a vegetable can be divided into the categories of tubers, roots, leafy vegetables, legumes ( or pulses), and fruits commonly considered as vegetables. "Vegetable" is part of the more general category of "plants" or "herbs," but doesn't include fungi of which we actually discuss two examples in the present study. Consequently, the correct term for the topic of the present article would be " edible, mostly leafy, and mostly wildly growing, green plants plus a few fungi, that have been part of the Luo culture for a large time span." So though slightly imprecise, we have chosen to use the term " traditional vegetables." In many developing countries the food and nutrition security situation is worsening due to climatic and socioeconomic conditions. This article discusses the sociocultural factors associated with the consumption of traditional vegetables among the Luo of western Kenya. Through semi-tructured interviews with key informants and market surveillance, data were collected on vegetable identification, availability and procurement, preparation, perceptions and practices as well as availability and pricing at local markets. Altogether 72 different edible vegetables were identified, most of which were growing wild. While some traditional vegetables are still consumed, many of them are used more and more rarely, except for the lean days when no alternatives are available. Traditional vegetables and other wild food items constitute an under-utilized resource when it comes to food and nutrition security in vulnerable communities. However, cultural and social factors need to be taken into consideration and anthropological studies can play an important role in that endeavor.