Missing the food from the woods: the case of Soliga tribes of Western Ghats, India
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Forest dependent indigenous communities have traditionally fulfilled their dietary requirements from a range of locally available food resources. For Soliga tribes of Biligirirangana Hills (BR Hills) in India’s Western Ghats, gathering of wild berries, tubers and mushrooms, shifting cultivation of millets, legumes and vegetables within the forests and small game hunting have habitually supported food and subsistence needs. Over the years, the traditional food practices have transformed drastically, driven by conservation policies that resulted in the resettlement of Soligas to forest peripheries, a ban on traditional fire practices and consequent colonization of forests by invasive species, altering the forest composition and leading to decline of wild food resources. We trace the trajectory of changes in Soliga food systems using a combination of methodologies ranging from a comprehensive literature review and expert interviews to household surveys in three Soliga settlements in BR Hills. Our study reveals the diminishing importance of forests as source of food and income and shift from food crops to cash crops in farms in forest peripheries to avert crop raids by wildlife. Dependence on forest produce collection and farming was found to vary based on the allocation of tribal land rights and the location of the settlements with respect to the forest type and availability of markets. While existing literature and expert respondents recognize the changing forest dynamics and the immense ecological knowledge of Soligas that complements forest conservation efforts, the nexus between forests, farming and health and nutrition of the tribe was hardly appreciated. Improved access to public food distribution system and evolving cultural preferences has increased the dependence on external markets for food. We further discuss the repercussions of these transitions on nutritional security and food sovereignty of the community.
Keywords: Food systems, Human health and well-being, Biodiversity conservation, Agriculture, Sustainable Forest management
ID: 3483228