Native Roots

By Kibbe Conti, Registered Dietician
Tribal Connections

Restoring Traditional Food Systems

Indigenous people have witnessed a steady erosion of their traditional food systems, food sovereignty, health security and livelihood security since contact with non-native settlers. Loss of traditional lands, loss of plants and animal herds, fish and loss of traditional water sources have nearly destroyed traditional food systems. Now, Indian nations are increasingly concerned with maintaining and strengthening traditional subsistence foods and practices.

"Most Indian Cultures ate quantities of superior quality animals and seafood to maintain resistance to disease, great physical strength, and perfect, normal reproduction," according to dentist and early nutritionist Dr. Weston Price, author of the book "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration". Sadly, many Indian communities today have poor access to the kinds of healthy foods that once gave them superior health. Restoring Traditional Food Systems gives tribes the hope of restoring the health of their nation.

I would like to share some of the highlights from the International Indian Treaty Council survey on Indigenous Peoples' Traditional Foods and Cultures, which took place in 2003. This survey aimed to build understanding of the cultural importance of traditional and subsistence foods to the overall well-being of communities around the world. The survey results were shared with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

According to the survey respondents, some of the top activities that impact traditional food systems are: land development programs, tourism or parks designation, policies on land and water rights, access and introduction of new foods, contamination of traditional subsistence used for harvesting, fishing, hunting and gathering, mining, logging and ranching.

Perhaps, because of the urgency to protect traditional food practices, more communities have begun to take action to protect and/or restore subsistence foods. A large majority of respondents indicated that their community has started activities to protect or restore traditional food practices. Some examples of these activities include: a fish hatchery, game reserves, watershed restoration, hunting restrictions (on outsiders); reclaiming or taking responsibility for being stewards of the land, planting gardens consisting of traditional foods, increasing water quality standards, resisting unilateral economic development, teaching the traditional way of preparing meats and vegetables in honoring the sacrifice they represent, restoring traditional farming techniques and seeds, patenting the germoplasm of our native, domestic varieties of maize, white bean and caxtilcin (MEXICO); restoring buffalo to tribal lands, and numerous other activities.