Foraging and Sustainable Local Fair Food Systems

By James Baron
Nut 180

Our generation is in peril. There are multitudes of factors that can cause our modern conventional food
systems to fail. To make matters worse the vast majority of the population lacks the knowledge that our rugged and
self reliant ancestors had about food acquisition. This is where knowledge and skills regarding foraging come in,
educating people about wild edibles and creating food rich environments such as food forests are vital steps for
creating individuals and communities with food independence. Throughout the ages, most households have been in
charge of a significant portion of their own food production. That has changed only in the past couple of hundred
years. But as food prices go up, food riots break out, and the food supply becomes ever more toxic, perhaps its time
to return to the traditions of yesteryear. At some point in the very near future, home gardening may no longer be just
a hobby; for millions of Americans, it could become a necessity. (Rawdy, 2010)
The first food systems emerged when early humans began to domesticate edible animals and plants for
food. Mark Cohen suggested that increases in population densities may have required people to forage over larger
areas in search of food, eventually making it more efficient to domesticate and cultivate their own rather than travel
large distances in search of fame and wild plants. (Robbins, 2008) Some say this gave birth to civilization itself. As
food production increased society evolved. At the present the vast majority of humanity relies on a modern or
conventional food system in order to remain fed. This system arose as part of the agrochemical and industrial
revolutions. As technology advanced families and individuals moved away from self-sufficiency and self reliance
while becoming more dependent on the emerging modern food system. Our current food system one that allows
less than 2 percent of our population to feed the rest of us (Hesterman, 2011) This is a dangerous trend because
every time this system has failed for extended periods of time famine and problems associated with it follow not
long afterwards. The immediate effect would be that those who are dependent on this system would not be able to
provide for their needs. They might engage in violent behavior such as rioting and looting to sate their hunger.
Thieves steal rice right from the fields. Hijackers loot trucks carrying flour, milk, and juice on their way to
supermarkets. Lethal fights break out in bread lines. People are trampled to death in the frenzied rush caused by a
sale of cooking oil. These scenes were repeated the world over in 2008 as food shortages caused unrest and riots on
every continent. (Rawdy, 2010)
As briefly mentioned earlier humans were not as dependent and helpless throughout history, if this were the
case humanity would have surely gone extinct before the rise of civilization. Our prehistoric hunter gatherer
ancestors thrived in an environment in which no food systems existed, prior to the existence of agriculture the only
food available to them were wild edibles they foraged. For most of human existence, human beings produced food
by gathering wild plants-nuts, roots, berries, grains- and hunting large and small game. Generally, these people
enjoyed a high quality of life. They devoted only about twenty hours per week to work, and archaeological studies
and research among contemporary gathering and hunting societies indicate that food was relatively plentiful and
nutritious. (Robbins, 2008) After the rise of agriculture and civilization humanity relied on a food system that
slowly evolved and improved through trial and error. This is what eventually led to the development of skills and
knowledge that allowed our ancestors to be self-reliant, self-sufficient individuals. From our grandparents generation
and earlier most people knew how to grow and prepare their own food or live off the wild. The Great Depression
had a similar effect on my co-author, Walter Chandoha, and me. During those lean years, both our families worked
hard provide lifes necessities, and that included growing and selling produce of all sorts. Unlike many who were
less fortunate, we always had enough to eat year-round, thanks to home-canned fruits and vegetables and cured
meats for winter meals . . . Its a paradox that in todays Internet Age, when information about nearly everything is
easily available, many adults lack the most basic knowledge about growing food. (Wilson, 2010)
These skills are largely forgotten by younger generations but thankfully food wisdom of older generations
has been preserved in books and manuals. We must make an effort to make this knowledge mainstream yet again by
educating citizens. At present modern nations are filled with food desserts despite the fact that natural food sources
are abundant in those areas. A historical example of malnourishment amid abundance would be when Many early
explorers died from scurvy while sleeping on beds of spruce boughs, which when boiled into
tea would have provided all the vitamin C they needed. (Stroud, 2008)By teaching people how to
forage we make them less dependent on a food system that is already strained. We have already established that our
ancestors managed to survive without depending on modern styled food systems to provide for them, they provided
for themselves using their skill, knowledge and that which nature provided. Also for the past few months we have

learned about the modern food system along with its flaws and weaknesses. Recent headlines covering long term
disturbances in said system are prime examples of what happens when large dependent populations cannot meet
their needs. By educating people about wild edibles we decrease their dependence on an already strained and failing
system. Our ancestors did it so can we.
Different locales have different ecosystems that are filled with different plants. As Les Stroud points out
Your quest for food will be easier if before you leave you research what you can eat, how to
catch or pick it, and how to make it edible. There may be food in abundance all around you
in the wild, but you have to know its there, and if necessary, how to prepare it. And theres
danger in consuming something without knowing if its edible. The first time I saw star fruit
was in Costa Rica. As I stared, wondering if they were poisonous, my survival buddy and
military survival expert Mike Kiraly was stuffing his face with them. Had it not been for him, I
might never have tried them, thereby missing out on an important and abundant food
source. (Stroud, 2008) Therefore in order to educate citizens and/or forage in our location
we must familiarize ourselves with local edibles. Though books can offer a lot of knowledge
firsthand experience and/or training is required in order to be able to forage safely, this is all
the more reason to educate people before promoting this plan of action. People must be able
to forage safely. Plant identification in various parts of the world is difficult at the best of
times, even if you have a book telling you their Latin names and accompanied by photos.
The same plant may look different depending on your location or the time of year, and this is
not easily gleaned from most guidebooks. Some plants are safe to eat, abundant, and easily
identified, but for the most part reading a book is not the way to learn about most wild
edibles. You really need an expert on the local vegetation to offer you firsthand education on
location: you should smell it, touch it, taste it. Then, when the time comes, youll know it.
(Stroud, 2008) A few examples of very easily identified local edibles would be dandelion,
cattails, kelp, raspberry and blackberry. There are multitudes of edible plant species in a
given area which is why knowledge, experience and hands on training are essential for
successfully teaching new foragers what to keep an eye open for. Experts estimate there
are about 300,000 classified plants growing on the surface of the Earth . . . there are two
considerations that survivors must keep in mind when procuring plant foods. The first
consideration, of course, is the plant be edible, and preferable, palatable. Next, it must be
fairly abundant in the areas in which it is found. If it includes and inedible or poisonous
variety in its family, the edible plant must be distinguishable to the average eye from the
poisonous one. Usually a plant is selected because one special part is edible, such as the
stalk, the fruit or the nut. (US Air Force, 2008) Details of edible plant species will be covered
in depth via powerpoint presentation, this is only a summary.
Animal and bug food sources are another good natural food source. In fact many
survivalists and wildcraft experts prefer this food source because they provide more
essential nutrients and protein. On top of that they are far more plentiful than plant sources.
Animal food gives the most food value per pound. Anything that creeps, crawls, swims, or
flies is a possible source of food. People eat grasshoppers, hairless caterpillars, wood-boring
beetle larvae and pupae, ant eggs, spider bodies, and termites . . . everyone has probably
eaten insects contained in flour, cornmeal, rice, beans, fruits and greens in their daily food.
(US Air Force, 2008) Furthermore the good news about critters is that they are plentiful in many parts of the
world. From worms to ants to frogs, there are usually lots of items on the menu. The problem, obviously, is that
most of us find the prospect of eating bugs and slugs and snails downright disgusting, a phenomenon known as plate
fright. . . Almost every culture on the planet has either an active or recent history of eating critters as part of its diet,
whether it be tarantulas in the Amazon, chocolate ants in India, or grubs in northern Ontario. Were not alone, either:
most predators and big game animals will eat bugs too. If youre at risk of starving, the fact that these creatures are
almost universally high in protein and fat may make them more appealing. Dont forget that insect larvae are also
edible. (Stroud, 2008)
Many ecosystems do indeed have a dearth of edible wildlife and plant life. This can
be due to environmental damage caused by humans or this can be due to naturally

occurring conditions. Some food desserts also lack natures bounty as well. Therefore it is
not enough to educate people on local natural food source identification and procurement;
one must help increase their availability. One way people have tried doing this is by creating
food forests. Planting thousands of fruit or nut bearing trees in or near a food dessert would
help eliminate food insecurity. Many homesteaders, survivalists, off the grid living advocates,
permaculturists and horticulturalists have managed to turn their property or even damaged
wilderness into abundant edible mini-ecosystems. There are plenty of cases of
homesteaders producing more than enough food for their families and neighborhoods with
just one acre of land. There have also been cases of individuals creating vast food forests in
areas in need of reforestation. A famous example of an individual creating food forests is
Johnny Appleseed. Food forests in or near communities and/or food desserts coupled with
foraging workshops will increase food security and further alleviate pressure on the both
local fair food systems and conventional food systems. The more food independence the
community and individuals have the better.
The conventional food system is failing furthermore hiccups in said system have
resulted in famine, food riots, looting, starvation and fighting. What we need is for
communities and individuals to create a fair, local, sustainable food system and to increase
food independence and security as much as possible. Two ways this can be done is by
teaching individuals where and how to procure food from natural sources and to create
natural sources by propagating acres upon acres of local food forests.

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