African Food Consumption Succeeds If Seed Is Shared

By Steve Ephraem

ZIMBABWE’S focus to have traditional food becoming the mainstream diet shall succeed if the country’ seed sovereignty is attained.

This came out during a food interface which took place at Cresta Oasis Lodge in Harare on 20 July 2023. The interface was coordinated by Participatory Ecological Land Use Management (PELUM) Association Zimbabwe and ran under the theme “My Food is African!”

PELUM is promoting the concept of bringing back African food in the mainstream diet of Zimbabweans. As a result, the organisation has engaged media practitioners from various media houses in the country to give the African food sovereignty narrative.

In her opening remarks, a food entrepreneur, Bertha Nherera, who coordinated the seminar on behalf of PELUM said, “Our African tradition is known for sharing. We know that food in African society was shared from early times. Our elders shared seed since food is grown from seeds. We should continue sharing the local and traditional seed since it is where our food comes from.”

PELUM Association Zimbabwe introduced the promotion of African food consumption under the “My food is Africa”theme in the previous year and is expecting that the concept shall help people nationwide to embrace the consumption of locally grown organic and traditional food.