FOODS FOR THOUGHT!

By KOPANO MONAHENG 

PEOPLE used to eat a particular staple food thousands of years ago and because people were grouped according to their clan or tribe, they were known for a particular dish.

As generations evolve and people start to live together irrespective of their tribe, they are slowly but surely stopping the practice their great, great grandparents followed for years.

Most of these foods, like Dikgobe (boiled corn), Motoho (soft porridge), Dipabi (instant sorghum porridge or pop corn (Diqhome) are today accessed from big supermarkets and restaurants around the world.

But who branded these foods?

Someone stole our great grandfather’s idea and made it their own.

As Mzansi celebrates Heritage Month, we decided to focus a lot more on types of foods our elders used to eat back in the days.

Young people today don’t know of these things unless we teach them.

According to African Food Network, people not only eat foods to survive, but they also get nutrition and energy.

It says that memories, culture, heritage and information are also rich within the food space.

Have you ever wondered why certain cultures identify with certain foods and why certain events, especially in the African culture, call for certain foods?

Now, imagine a directory or an online library that your children and children’s children can go back to years down the line, just to experience the type of food you used to eat.

The African Food Network aims to do exactly that, educate the young generation about Africans and their culture.

This Heritage Month, the goal is to ensure that our diverse culture is shared through food. 

For example, many Africans identify with offal meat, and this is simply because of the history of the sharing and access to certain foods.

Tshego Stone, founder of Cucumber & Cream and brand ambassador for South African Food Network, said during Heritage Month, the biggest conversations are around our languages and attires. “We forget that the food we eat also has a story within the larger scheme of things,” she said.

Tshego said thst the Xhosa people prepare samp in a totally different way from the BaTswana clan. “We identify with offal as our heritage food, from the mogodus, skopos and trotters. I think it’s important that we are able to go back and record all of these foods that we enjoy for future generations to be able to taste what we tasted years ago”