Food production presentation

Batek De• Inhabiting Lebir River

watershed in southeastern Kelantan and the northernmost tributaries of the Tembeling River in Pahang.– Primary lowland

tropical rain forest

Brief Overview: Batek De’

• A group of about 500 Semang (Malayan Negritos) associated with river rather than land.– Travel in smaller groups with about 30 people

• Typically short, dark-skinned, and curly hair.• “Opportunistic foraging”– Hunting and gathering, trade of forest produce, small-

scale horticulture, and working for outsiders.• Importance of sharing

Saami People

The Saami People

• Indigenous people of Northern Europe– Estimated 150,000

worldwide

• Wide variety of physical appearances from European to East-Asian

• Lutheranism is the major religion of the Saami

Saami Subsistence

• Traditionally reindeer pastoralists– Maintain herds of semi-domesticated reindeer for

both food and economic gain• Focus on Saami in Finnmark– Largest county in Norway– Largest Saami population in Norway– Largest population of reindeer pastoralists Norway

Transition to Pastoralism

• Reindeer were the first large animal to inhabit northern Europe after the last ice age

• Saami move into area and use reindeer meat as food source and hides and fur for clothing

• Tame reindeer to use as decoys during hunting

• By the 17th century, large semi-domesticated herds overseen by Saami

Betsileo: Overview

• Central Highlands of Madagascar

• One of 20 Ethnic Groups• Agriculturalists whose

main concern is rice• Cultivate variety of

secondary crops• Generally peasant farmers• Reside within state of

Madagascar

Betsileo: Brief History

• Existed for around three centuries

• Group of states in the 18th and 19th centuries

• Conquered by the Merina to the north

• Conquest by France in 1895

• 1960 – Malagasy Republic

Typical Village

• Traditional house• Cattle corrals• Kitchen Gardens• Granaries• As one leaves the village, secondary fields are

most common• Rice fields located on outskirts of village

Food Production

• Gathering seasonal fruits (July to September) and honey (April to June) – Most preferred food.

• Mostly digging wild tubers (yams)

• Other major plant foods included palm cabbage and palm pith, mushrooms, ferns, bamboo shoots, berries, nuts, and seeds.

Food Production: Gathering

Food Production: Hunting• Between mid-September and late January• Hunt mostly aboreal game with blowpipes and

poisoned darts– Animals sought are monkeys, gibbons, squirrels,

birds, bamboo rats, smaller rodents, civets, monitor lizards, turtles, tortoises, porcupines, scaly ant-eaters, and frogs.

• Fishing, poisoning fish and gill-netting– Aquatic animals sought include fish, prawns and

crabs.

Food Production: Hunting

Food Production and Religion: Taboos• Religion centers on superhuman beings and deities

such as thunder god, who are connected with the forces of nature.– Hala’ (superhuman beings who created all life) – Lawac (punishable by thunder god)

• Forbidden to hunt and consume– Bearcat story

• Animals from veins and tendons: insects, worms, and reptiles• Animals from skin: butterflies and moths

– Pangan (can kill humans)animals: leopards, tigers, elephants, or snakes

• Forbidden combinations of food– Honey with takop

• Fire lawac: rules in cooking food– All animals killed by blowpipe must be cooked

alone except for salt.– Forbidden to cook combination of food with

offensive mixed odors

Food Production and Religion: Taboos

• During study period of 9 months in 1975-1976– For adequate diet, men worked 28.63 hours per

week (10 hours on rattan) and women worked 20.09 hours per week (3.28 hours on rattan)

– To gain equivalent number of calories by digging tubers, men would have to work extra 5.9 hours and women would have to work extra 1.84 hours per week.

Food Production: Comparison of Time Spend

ReindeerRangifer tarandus

• The reindeer is by far the most important food source of the Saami

• Reindeer meat with high fat content is best

• All parts of the reindeer eaten including:– Blood (sausage)– Bone Marrow– Meat

Herd Movements

The Saami Year

Summer

Herds on the Coast

• Herds pasture on peninsulas near coast– Coast is cool, wet, and windy

• Reduces stress on animals due to heat• Reduces insects which force animals to higher, less

nutrient-rich pastures

• Good summer pasture is crucial for herd health– Yearlings and calves must gain weight to ensure they

survive the upcoming winter– Cows must gain weight to ensure healthy calving the

following year

Minimal Herding

• Herders do little work over the summer as they leave the deer to roam freely to find the most nutritious vegetation– Some animals are slaughtered to make clothing– New calves are earmarked to designate ownership

Food of the Summer

• Animals are slaughtered as necessary and the meat is eaten without preservation– Meat usually boiled– Some herders drink fresh reindeer blood– Usually calves who were deserted by their mother

or older females are chosen for slaughter

Food of the Summer

• Freshwater or Saltwater fish eaten from local fjords or rivers– Net caught– Eaten boiled, grilled, or

smoked

• Wild berries gathered and eaten– The cloudberry, rich in

vitamin C, is most common

Autumn

Herds Separated

• Herds are moved to corrals inland from the summer pastures– Herds must be separated as animals may have

mixed over the summer• Merchants come to corrals to buy meat– On-the-hoof – selling live animals– Joints – select cuts of animals sold– Whole – entire carcass of animals sold

Saami Separation Corral

Food of the Autumn

• Reindeer– Animals killed and eaten fresh– Smoked and dried meat from previous winter

• Fish– Dried fish from summer catches

• Mushrooms– boiled

Food of the Autumn

• Berries– Cranberries ripen in the

fall, eaten fresh and preserved

• Bread– Made from sugar, flour,

margarine traditionally received via trade (bought today)

– Pine tree bark ground and mixed with flour to make crusty bread

Winter

Winter Pasture

• Herds moved to winter pasture about 80 miles inland from the coast

• Herds spend winter foraging for lichens beneath the snow

• Winter is a time of survival– Animals lose weight due to energy output digging

for food• Small numbers of animals herded back to

slaughterhouses near autumn pastures

Food of the Winter

• Reindeer– Meat eaten fresh– Animals killed and meat

smoked in tents for consumption over the next ear

• Fish– Fish dried during

summer– Bought in villages

Food of the Winter

• Lichen– Made into lichen soup or added to bread– Dried and used a spice

• Coffee– Bought in villages– Traditionally given to any visitor during the winter

Spring

Calving• Males and females separated

and move as two herds until summer– Males move directly to summer

pasture– Females move to calving

grounds

• Calving occurs in May– Herders act as midwives – Calves can move well within 24

hours– Female herd moves towards

summer pastures 2 weeks after calving ends

Food of the Spring• Reindeer

– Dried and smoked deer from winter

– Calves whose mothers desert them are slaughtered and eaten

• Ptarmigan – Both bird and eggs eaten

• Fish– ice fishing on lakes and rivers

that are still frozen

• Fireweed– Root picked early in spring and

boiled

Food Production

• Intensive agriculturists• Reputedly the best farmer in Madagascar• Rice Farmers• Other Secondary Crops• Cattle (Zebu) are essential• Use terracing and irrigation• Some areas rely on rainfall

Food Production

• Most time devoted to farming• Focused mainly on rice and cattle• Other crops include manioc, yams, Irish

potatoes, greens, maize• Chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigs• Secondary crops grown in kitchen gardens or

outlying fields

Main Tools

• Cattle are an essential tool• Long handled, iron bladed spade• Plows and harrows also used• Irrigation and fertilizer canals• Cattle dung and/or chemical fertilizer• Iron sickles, knives• Granary• Various pens for livestock

The Rice Cycle

• Rice grown on permanent plots• June, July, August are the offseason• 55% of all harvest done in April– Virtually all will be completed by May

• Care is generally year round• Repair and drainage, seeding of nursery beds,

fields flooded, transplanting, weeding, harvest, threshing, winnowing, transport to granary

• Each task assigned to different genders

The Rice Cycle

• Intensity and yield depends on soil type, plot size, and seasonal weather

• Soil Types: Baibo, Fotaka• Rice Varieties: Lahy, Angika, Lava• Better rice eaten by higher status• Variation in status and what crops are

grown/eaten• Manioc is the main secondary crop

The Rice Cycle: Repair and Maintenance

• Repair and maintenance soon after the cycle• Bunds are repaired in May and June• The fields are drained• Followed by the ceremonial season• Period marked generally by relaxation

Seeding

• Seeds first grown in nursery beds– 40 days to 3 months

• Marks the beginning of the cycle• Time of seeding varies by location• Depends on reliance on irrigation• Preparation will usually take around a day• Rice field must be tilled– Use either spades or increasingly more often, plows

Pre-Transplant

• Use of cattle most apparent• Used to drag plows• Dung used as fertilizer – Transported manually or by water canal

• Irrigated fields flooded before transplant– 5 – 10 cm

• Many fertilize soil just before transplant• Cattle pound soil, evening it• This mixes the previous steps together

Transplant

• Transplanting and Harvest are main times of cycle

• Nursery to fields• Custom is only women transplant• Traditionally planted Haphhazardly• Modern method: Transplant in rows– More efficient

Weeding

• Follows transplanting• For protection of the crops• Month after transplanting• Two weedings• Can take up to a month• Last step before the harvest

Harvest

• Process of collecting mature rice crop• Major Part of the rice cycle• Communal activity• Stalks are reeped– Knife or iron sickle

• Stalks are compacted by stomping• Then arranged into long pile

Final Steps

• Threshing: removing the paddy from the stalks– Stalks are rub against rocks– Beaten with sticks

• Winnowing: Final steps involving drying• Paddy must be at proper moisture level for

storage• All members of family transport to granary• Cycle is complete

Trade

Trade• Collected and traded rattan and some honey when

available to Malay traders for rice, flour, sugar, cooking oil, cloth, tools, and other manufactured goods.

• Trade goods contain more calories per unit of weight than wild foods

• Traded foods can be saved for the flood season and obtained during the lean season following the floods.

• Enhance mobility.– Batek can carry traded goods into areas with little wild food.

• Most Batek say the prefer the flavor of rice and fried-flour dough balls to tubers.

• Slave-raiding Period (1860-1920)– Chinese Merchants in larger towns and villages– Unlikely that the Batek obtained significant amounts of

cultivated foods from Malays• Japanese Occupation (1941-1945)– No trade

• The Emergency (1948-1960)– No trade

• The Asian Financial Crisis (1998)– Increased price of rice

Trade

Bossekop Market• Market held each December and March during the centuries prior to WWII• Items traded to Merchants and Peasants by Saami

– Cuts of meat – flank, shoulder, throat, legs– Skins and furs– Live animals and whole carcasses

• Items traded to Saami by Merchants– Sugar, flour, margerine– Coffee– Alcohol

• Items traded to Saami by Peasants– Ptarmigan– Mutton (sheep meat)– Wool– Clothes – gloves, shirts, blankets, cloths– Oil – to keep moccasins from cracking

Trade Today

• Saami take animals to slaughterhouses and receive cash or credit– No direct transfer of goods– Saami receive extra money if they do the

butchering work at the slaughterhouses• Saami must take the money earned and buy

from merchants• 1991 price: US $6 per kilogram

Gender Roles

Gender Roles • Egalitarian society• Men– Hunts to provide game for the family, cooks monkey– Climbing tree to collect honey and bee larvae.

• Women– Usually women dig for and gather wild tubers.

Women often bring children to dig for tubers.– Usually picks up the ripened fruits from the ground– Fishing using rod

Saami Gender Roles

• Men traditionally do most of the herding– Women and children help:• When herding large numbers of animals• In the early fall when animals easily stray towards still

lush foraging grounds

• Men do most, but not all slaughtering• Women only enter the front of the Saami tent– Slaughtering is done near the back entrance so

women enter only the front

Gender Roles in Production

• Very defined• Tasks are further classified by age• Female labor is extremely crucial– Contribute around 1/3 of hours put into rice production

• Jobs vary by what crop is being grown• Also vary in regards to animal care– Men always tend to cattle– Women tend to pigs, chickens, turkeys, geese, and ducks

Gender in Secondary Crops

• Women often keep kitchen gardens– Contain low maintenance crops

• Men fetch firewood• Men usually cultivate secondary crops– Do all work with Irish potatoes and taro

• Women help harvest manioc and tobacco

The Rice Cycle

• Gender roles in the rice cycle are very complex• Broken into each stage of the cycle• Men generally do the more arguous tasks• Tend to fields on a daily basis• Women needed most for transplanting,

pounding, and transport

Field Preparation

• Men repair the bunds• Nursery preparation is done by adult males• Male labor involved in field repair, maintenance,

and field preparation• Women not usually involved in earlier stages• Trampling of fields is done by males in teens

through thirties• Elder men will break up Earth that cattle missed

Transplanting and Weeding

• Actual planting in fields is done strictly by women– Teens to mid 40s

• Adult men and women will carry the seeds• General care of field is done by men, and

therefore weeding– Protection from birds and other pests also done

by men

Harvest

• Actual reaping is done by men– Teens, twenties, and thirties

• Females carry stalks from fields to threshing floors– Teens or twenties

• Women in their 40s and 50s arrange the stalks in piles

• Elderly me and women compact• Much of the harvest is performed by women

Threshing and Final Tasks

• Removing paddy from stalks is performed by males

• Young men and boys thresh• Older men will beat stalks • Winnowing done mostly by women• Women check on granaries daily, provide rice

to the family

Outside Influences on Food Production

Government Influence on Food

• The Emergency (1948-1960)– Governmental removal of Malay farmers nearby Batek. – Batek moved into vacated areas and took advantage of

the foods left behind including crops and mature fruit trees.

• 1956 and 1960s: Department of Aboriginal Affairs– Enticed all Batek to settle together and take instruction

in agriculture. – Returned to foraging when government-supplied

rations rand out.

Government

• 1978 Act– Government chooses who becomes a pastoralist– Reindeer fences erected to separate pastures

• Implications– Deer begin to line up along reindeer fences as

migration comes closer quickly depleting the food source in the area• Leads to lower weights over the winter and less

successful calving in spring• Herders make less money when selling their deer

Global Warming

• Average temperature is rising by half a degree Celsius per year– Causes freezing and thawing during the winter

that creates ice sheets over the lichen beds• Deer expend extra energy digging for food and lose the

fat that is desired by the Saami for food

• Rivers freeze later and thaw earlier, forcing the deer to change their migration paths

Outside Influences and Change

• As stratification increased, rice may not be the main crop anymore

• Chemical Fertilizer• Mechanized farming

methods (plow, iron sickle, etc.)

• Use of Japanese rotary weeder

• Method of planting seeds• Lack of sheep and goats

Modernization

Modernization• Urbanization and globalization for economic development in

Malaysia resulted in Batek people losing land area– Deforestation due to monocrop plantation development and

hydroelectric-dam building. • Fatalities during floods, disease, and contamination of water supplies

and decline in mental health.

– Decline in quantity and quality of food and water source.• Less productive in hunting, game harder to find. • Buy more food

– Loss of biodiversity due to forest islands.– Less mobility, more sharing of space– Blasts of dynamite that result in more rain.

• No organized Batek action against deforestation.– Want to be heard and communicate with outsiders.

• More dependence on rice• Continuance of digging for wild tubers– High cultural value

Modernization

Snowmobiles

• Snowmobiles changed herding practices– Animals are panicked by

snowmobiles and flee– Decreased migration

times

• Increased mobility of herders– Live in permanent

homes and “commute” to the herd

Other Modernizations

• Airplanes and Helicopters– Used by richest herders to find stray deer– Radio to other herders on snowmobiles location of

deer to be rounded up• Boats– Reindeer loaded onto ferries for faster migration

to peninsulas and islands

Conclusion

Batek De’: Conclusion

• Free of constraint. – Opportunistic foraging

• “Life is harder, but not impossible”• Harmony with environment due to

prohibitions. • “Don’t take away more forests, make that the

limit. We look for food alike”.

Heard Health

• The most important thing to Saami pastoralists is HERD HEALTH– Spend the entire year trying to get the fattest

reindeer• Diet is supplemented by fish, berries and

bought goods• Modernization has increased ease of herding

and helped to increase the quality of the meat

Conclusion

• Intensive agriculturists whose focus is rice• Cattle play a large part in everyday life• Rice production is an annual process that

takes up most of the time of the Betsileo• Gender roles are well defined and complex• Hard working culture with little leisure time• Have remainly largely unchanged or affected

by modernization