2023-09-25 16:12:00
Arara children return to the ancestral taste of their culture, damaged by the impacts of the construction of the Belo Monte plant | Priscila Tapajowara/ISA
Wàt tynondem (Roasted fish wrapped in a banana leaf), Karak’kuréum (Taioba), and Onatji Magarapa (Roasted corn cake) —) these are the names of three traditional dishes of the Arara indigenous people that are now part of the lunch menu school in four schools located on the banks of the Iriri River, in Altamira, Pará.
The inclusion of these foods in the lunch is the result of action research work carried out in the Postgraduate Program in Environment and Rural Development at the University of Brasília (UnB), which was supported by the Instituto Socioambiental (ISA).
The research connected the knowledge of older people with the systematization of information by younger people at schools in the Arara Indigenous Land. The result was the availability of a high diversity of traditional foods for these educational institutions, the inclusion of these foods in food programs and the strengthening of Arara culture. Check it out in the video:
During the last year, indigenous people delivered a total of 56 varieties of traditional foods within the territory, benefiting 211 Arara students.
Elders played a fundamental role, sharing their vast knowledge about collecting, fishing and preparing these foods with younger generations, and promoting the appreciation of ancestral traditions.
The connection between research and public food policies was planned from the beginning of the work. In 2023, traditional food will be integrated into school meals at TI Arara through the Food Acquisition Program (PAA), with the expectation of implementation by the National School Meal Program (PNAE) — both from the federal government in partnership with the Altamira City Hall.
The inclusion of traditional and local foods in public purchasing processes, especially in school meals, is the result of interinstitutional dialogue promoted by the People’s Traditional Food Commissions (Catrapovos), both in the states and nationally. The commissions have been issuing opinions and technical notes with the aim of adapting policies and programs to enable access by Indigenous Peoples and Traditional Communities in accordance with their ways of life.
A Technical note no. 01/2017 of the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) in Amazonas played a fundamental role in ensuring that schools began purchasing products directly from communities, and have been connecting government processes to local realities. However, it was only in 2020 that the MPF, through another note, adapted the reality of Amazonas for all traditional peoples and communities in Brazil. This action democratizes access to public policies, providing opportunities to generate income in rural communities and encouraging the school meals provided to respect the ancestry and culture of indigenous peoples and traditional communities.
The movement marks a notable advance in relation to the previous scenario, which limited traditional food to arriving on the blue plate, a typical utensil in kitchens and school cafeterias in Brazil where school meals are served.
Arara food diversity arrived on the blue plates of public schools|Priscila Tapajowara/ISA Indigenous people deliver Wàt tynondem (roasted fish wrapped in a banana leaf) to indigenous schools|Priscila Tapajowara/ISA
Resuming a healthy diet for the Arara is urgent, as there is a progressive increase in chronic diseases resulting from poor diet. Schools have been one of the main vectors for the introduction of processed foods into communities.
With the construction of the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant, the Arara experienced an increase in the consumption of processed foods as a result of the implementation of actions under the emergency plan and the hydroelectric plant’s basic environmental plan, which caused the population to develop illnesses due to poor nutrition. According to data obtained via the Access to Information Law (LAI) by InfoAmazonia reportfrom January 2014 to June 2023, 45 cases of hypertension and diabetes were recorded among the Arara.
Real food policy
The PAA is a federal government initiative that purchases food directly from family farmers and traditional communities, such as indigenous people and quilombolas. These purchased foods are then destined for social programs, such as school meals, hospitals, daycare centers and social assistance institutions.
This year, Rede Terra do Meio, an organization that brings together seven indigenous peoples, residents of three Extractive Reserves and family farmers from the Médio Xingu region, of which the Arara of TI Arara are part, submitted a R$1 project to the PAA notice .5 million reais to allocate locally produced food to the 90 municipal schools that serve more than 2,500 students in this territory. In this way, the Arara will provide their traditional foods in their schools during the year 2024. The expectation is that the other peoples who are part of the Terra do Meio Network will also incorporate their diversity into school meals.
Leonardo de Moura, technical advisor at ISA, and researcher who developed the aforementioned research, explains that this permission is also a measure of cultural strengthening, since young people began to recover the flavor of their own culture, dormant with their elders.
“At a time of climate change and erosion of diversity, this knowledge is very valuable. What is eaten in the forest has history, tradition and ways of doing things that can solve future problems. The school can teach children that traditional food is good and become a space where the transmission of food knowledge between generations is encouraged and strengthened,” said Moura.
In addition to promoting healthy eating, the project involved young people in recording the traditional food gathering and fishing practices of the Arara people. The audiovisual material reveals the variety of foods, preparations and traditional knowledge that can be incorporated into school meals in the Arara Indigenous Land.
Maurig Arara was one of four young people who participated in the pilot project for the resumption of traditional food Arara|Priscila Tapajowara/ISAA resumption of traditional fishing
Traditional school meals can be integrated with other educational activities at the school, as was the case with the delivery of Tybom (Jiju) and Ótpa (Tamoatá) fish. Six young people from the Iory village, who had never before participated in catching fish in the forest or known the catching techniques used by older connoisseurs, had the opportunity to follow this activity and learn from it.
Toitji Arara teaches young people in the community the Murot, a type of trap used to capture fish|Priscila Tapajowara/ISA
Toitji Arara, the oldest elder from Aldeia Laranjal, in the Arara TI, participated in the activity teaching the younger ones the murot – the name of the trap to catch the fish – and was excited about the possibility of passing on this knowledge.
“I was raised doing all this, but a lot of kids don’t know it yet and that’s why we’re teaching it. We’re not going to lose that, we’re not going to lose our fishing,” said elder Toitji.
A few days after the experience, the Arara community organized the Tybombé party, coincidentally during the Tybom (Jiju) season, something that had not happened for decades. It is undeniable that the revival of the traditional practice of capturing Tybom, forgotten for years, played a fundamental role in strengthening the culture of the Arara people.
Children learn Murot with the elders in their village | Priscila Tapajowara/ISA
“This action was so significant that the capture of Tybom for school feeding generated a dialogue at the school and we want to repeat the activity in the next dry season, this time with the school’s more active participation, entering the school teaching agenda”, said the director responsible for schools at Polo Arara, Renisson Batista Freire.
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