This article by Kelli Barrett and Ciro Calderon was originally published for Ecosystem Marketplace. Guatemalan forest communities living within Central America’s most intact rainforest are on a journey to become sustainable and self-reliant, and they’re relying on the Maya nut, long treated as a staple food across Latin America and even beyond, to help them […]
I was in the Amazon rainforest of Peru to see how Brazil nuts make the long journey from forest to nut mix. I wasn’t expecting a gourmet treat, but they tend to show up in unexpected places. Harvesting Brazil nuts is hard manual work, in remote areas, deep in the jungle. Harvesters spend long weeks in the forest gathering the cannonball-like fruit from the forest floor, shelling them on site and then hauling them in heavy loads miles through the forest. The harvest is intimately […]
Read More… from Feast in the Forest: Shiwi and its Brazil Nuts
Ojoche, Ojite, Ojushte, Ujushte, Capomo, Manchinga, Pisba waihka, Huje, Mojo, Ax, Ramon Nut, Breadnut… a partial list of many names for the same seed. Where I live, Ecuador, it’s called Sande but I had no idea it existed until I heard about the Maya Nut Institute a couple of months ago. Since 2001 Maya Nut Institute has improved livelihoods by empowering women and supporting nutritional health through this amazing seed, which they named “Maya Nut.” Maya Nut Institute […]
Read More… from Rescuing Ancient Superfoods – Changing lives in the process
