IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/agrhuv/v37y2020i3d10.1007_s10460-020-10027-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

“Every day it’s tuo zaafi”: considering food preference in a food insecure region of Ghana

Author

Listed:
  • Jessica R. Ham

    (Oxford College of Emory University)

Abstract

This study takes the role of food preference in food insecurity analysis seriously. Guided by feminist political ecology, I do so by underscoring bodily relationships to tuo zaafi a cereal based porridge upheld as a culturally important meal across semi-arid West Africa. Drawing from 12 months of mixed methods fieldwork in Upper West Ghana, I look at perceptions of this salient meal as well as rates of consumption of it to uncover how food preference features in food insecurity. I use the refrain routinely evoked by my interlocutors during the height of the food insecure season—“Every day it’s tuo zaafi” as an anchoring datum point, an affectively effective statement. In this examination, I argue that when effectively acknowledged and assessed, food preference is a facet of food security that helps to not only identify hunger, but also articulate the experience with it. This articulation is important because it provides a necessarily broader perspective on the relationship between culture, food and health that challenge neo-liberal hued solutions to hunger.

Suggested Citation

  • Jessica R. Ham, 2020. "“Every day it’s tuo zaafi”: considering food preference in a food insecure region of Ghana," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 907-917, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:37:y:2020:i:3:d:10.1007_s10460-020-10027-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s10460-020-10027-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10460-020-10027-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10460-020-10027-7?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Allison Hayes-Conroy & Elizabeth Sweet, 2015. "Whose adequacy? (Re)imagining food security with displaced women in Medellín, Colombia," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 32(3), pages 373-384, September.
    2. Carr, Edward R., 2006. "Postmodern conceptualizations, modernist applications: Rethinking the role of society in food security," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 14-29, February.
    3. Hom Gartaula & Kirit Patel & Derek Johnson & Rachana Devkota & Kamal Khadka & Pashupati Chaudhary, 2017. "From food security to food wellbeing: examining food security through the lens of food wellbeing in Nepal’s rapidly changing agrarian landscape," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(3), pages 573-589, September.
    4. Jason Hickel, 2016. "The true extent of global poverty and hunger: questioning the good news narrative of the Millennium Development Goals," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(5), pages 749-767, May.
    5. Elizabeth Finnis, 2007. "The political ecology of dietary transitions: Changing production and consumption patterns in the Kolli Hills, India," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 24(3), pages 343-353, September.
    6. Anna-Lisa Noack & Nicky Pouw, 2015. "A blind spot in food and nutrition security: where culture and social change shape the local food plate," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 32(2), pages 169-182, June.
    7. Maxwell, Simon, 1996. "Food security: a post-modern perspective," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 155-170, May.
    8. Nisbett, Nicholas, 2019. "Understanding the nourishment of bodies at the centre of food and health systems – systemic, bodily and new materialist perspectives on nutritional inequity," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 228(C), pages 9-16.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Carly Nichols & Halie Kampman & Mara Bold, 2022. "Forging just dietary futures: bringing mainstream and critical nutrition into conversation," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(2), pages 633-644, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ruiz Estrada, Mario Arturo, 2013. "The Application of the Minimum Food Security Quota (MFS-Quota): Malaysia," MPRA Paper 49970, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 19 Sep 2013.
    2. Mario Arturo Ruiz Estrada & Ibrahim Ndoma & Donghyun Park, 2016. "The Application Of The Minimum Food Security Quota In Response To A Potential Natural Disaster: The Case Of Malaysia," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 61(01), pages 1-19, March.
    3. Elena Vigan? & Gervasio Antonelli & Gian Italo Bischi & Fabio Tramontana, 2015. "Consumo e consumatori di prodotti alimentari nella societ? postmoderna," Economia agro-alimentare, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 17(1), pages 59-80.
    4. Hom Gartaula & Kirit Patel & Derek Johnson & Rachana Devkota & Kamal Khadka & Pashupati Chaudhary, 2017. "From food security to food wellbeing: examining food security through the lens of food wellbeing in Nepal’s rapidly changing agrarian landscape," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(3), pages 573-589, September.
    5. Guell, Cornelia & Brown, Catherine R & Iese, Viliamu & Navunicagi, Otto & Wairiu, Morgan & Unwin, Nigel, 2021. "“We used to get food from the garden.” Understanding changing practices of local food production and consumption in small island states," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 284(C).
    6. Haysom, Gareth & Tawodzera, Godfrey, 2018. "“Measurement drives diagnosis and response”: Gaps in transferring food security assessment to the urban scale," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 117-125.
    7. Lipy Adhikari & Sabarnee Tuladhar & Abid Hussain & Kamal Aryal, 2019. "Are Traditional Food Crops Really ‘Future Smart Foods?’ A Sustainability Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-16, September.
    8. Vincent Gitz & Alexandre Meybeck, 2011. "The establishment of the High Level Panel of Experts on food security and nutrition (HLPE). Shared, independent and comprehensive knowledge for international policy coherence in food security and nutr," Working Papers hal-00866427, HAL.
    9. Smith, Lisa C., 1998. "Can FAO's measure of chronic undernourishment be strengthened?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(5), pages 425-445, October.
    10. Gloria Novovic, 2022. "Can Agenda 2030 bring about “localization”? Policy limitations of Agenda 2030 in the broader global governance system," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 40(4), July.
    11. Maxwell, Daniel & Ahiadeke, Clement & Levin, Carol & Armar-Klemesu, Margaret & Zakariah, Sawudatu & Lamptey, Grace Mary, 1999. "Alternative food-security indicators: revisiting the frequency and severity of 'coping strategies'," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 411-429, August.
    12. Barbara Seed & Tim Lang & Martin Caraher & Aleck Ostry, 2013. "Integrating food security into public health and provincial government departments in British Columbia, Canada," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 30(3), pages 457-470, September.
    13. Nicky Roberts & Buchari Mengge & Brietta Oaks & Novita Sari & Irsan & Austin Humphries, 2023. "Fish consumption pathways and food security in an Indonesian fishing community," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(1), pages 1-19, February.
    14. Fander Falconí & Juan Cadillo Benalcazar & Freddy Llive Cóndor & Jesus Ramos-Martin & Belén Liger, 2015. "Pérdida de autosuficiencia alimentaria y posibilidades de complementariedad agrícola en los países de UNASUR," Documentos de Trabajo CEPROEC 2015_06, Instituto de Altos Estudios Nacionales, Centro de Prospectiva Estratégica.
    15. Benjamin Davis, 2002. "Is it Possible to Avoid a Lemon? Reflections on Choosing a Poverty Mapping Method," Working Papers in Food Policy and Nutrition 08, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
    16. Anna-Lisa Noack & Nicky Pouw, 2015. "A blind spot in food and nutrition security: where culture and social change shape the local food plate," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 32(2), pages 169-182, June.
    17. Feleke, Shiferaw T. & Kilmer, Richard L. & Gladwin, Christina H., 2003. "Determinants Of Food Security In Southern Ethiopia," 2003 Annual meeting, July 27-30, Montreal, Canada 22010, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    18. C. Larochez-Dupraz & M. Huchet-Bourdon, 2016. "Agricultural support and vulnerability of food security to trade in developing countries," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 8(6), pages 1191-1206, December.
    19. Suzanne Kapelari & Georgios Alexopoulos & Theano Moussouri & Konstantin J. Sagmeister & Florian Stampfer, 2020. "Food Heritage Makes a Difference: The Importance of Cultural Knowledge for Improving Education for Sustainable Food Choices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-23, February.
    20. Shuanglei Zhou & Shaojun Chen, 2023. "The Impact of the Anti-Poverty Relocation and Settlement Program on Farmers’ Livelihood: Perspective of Livelihood Space," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-15, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:37:y:2020:i:3:d:10.1007_s10460-020-10027-7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.