CHACSINKIN, Mexico –
The indigenous Mayan María Bacab considers herself a “keeper of the seeds,” for taking care of the milpa, an ancient Mesoamerican polyculture that mixes corn, beans, squash and some other vegetables, and promoting its practice and consumption in Mexico.
“I worked with my parents since I was little, I learned with them. The milpa is a benefit, because we do not buy corn. I like it, because we’ve been doing it since we were little,” she told IPS in the Xbox community (the black one, in the Mayan language), in Chansinkina municipality in the state of Yucatán, in southeastern Mexico.
The peasant woman combines family care tasks with agriculture. After cooking breakfast and taking her children to school, Bacab, 41 years old, divorced and with seven children, works on her one-hectare plot, returning at 11 in the morning to take care of her children who go to school. high school, and then return to planting.
Each year he obtains about 750 kilograms of grain for his own consumption, he also raises hairless pigs, a species native to this Mexican region, and weaves hammocks to complete his income. His three oldest children collaborate on the plantation.
Bacab is the only woman in a group of 11 milpa producers on X’box who store and exchange seeds. They select the best ones and keep them for a year, which allows them to be prepared for situations such as shortages, losses due to floods or drought. At least two seed banks operate in the municipality.
«We need corn to feed ourselves, producing it is what we do. We cannot sit idly by”: Leonardo Puc.
Each farmer in the group plants different varieties, so that multiple corn options persist, including several that are drought-resistant, and some have apiaries for sale and self-consumption. They have adopted seeds from the southern state of Chiapas and theirs have reached neighboring Campeche, with which it shares the Yucatan Peninsula, along with the state of Quintana Roo.
Corn is not only a native and predominant crop in Mexico, but a basic product in the diet of its 129 million inhabitants that goes beyond the culinary to integrate into the cultural roots of the country, linked to the native peoples.
The furrows of the cornfield that during harvest time, generally from January to March, shine with the green of the reeds, from which ears hang waiting for the harvesting hand. From its rows will come the grains that end up in doughs, tortillas (flat breads made from nixtamalized grain), atoles (thick drinks) and various other dishes.
Mexico’s three million corn farmers cultivate around eight million hectares, of which two million are destined for family consumption. in a country that has 64 varieties of the grain, 59 of them native.
Mexico is the seventh world producer of corn, the most cultivated cereal on the planet, and its second importer. It obtains about 27 million tons of grain annually, but still must import another 20 million to meet its internal consumption.
As in the entire country, the cornfield is essential for food in the municipality of Chansinkin. Inhabited by 3,255 people, nine out of 10 were poor and a third were extremely poor in 2023.
In the neighboring municipality of Tahdziu (place of the zui bird, in Mayan), the Mayan farmer Leonardo Puc, 65 years old, treasures the seeds as his most precious asset.
“That’s why nature teaches us,” said the coordinator of the Flor de Tajonal group (an emblematic flower of the region), with 28 members, married and father of six children.
“Seeing the result, other women show interest in entering and those who are already there want to increase their chicken coops. With our knowledge and experience, we advise new ones”: Nancy Interiano.
Five seed banks operate in the Tahdziú area. In a huano hut with a high roof made of huano, a local palm tree, and wooden beam walls, transparent plastic jars with white lids line a shelf. Inside they keep a fundamental part of peasant life: seeds of yellow and white corn, pumpkin and black beans.
Tahdziú also lives among deprivations, since his 5502 inhabitants are practically all poor and half live in extreme poverty.
Chickens that change lives
Maya Flora Chan’s mother bought and raised chickens and that is why she was not unfamiliar with the cage-free egg producer program that she entered in 2020 to improve her family economy.
“When we started, it was difficult, because people didn’t know our eggs. Now they buy every day,” he told IPS in the courtyard of his house in the municipality of Maní (where everything happened, in Mayan), near Chacsinkin.
Chan, single and childless, owns 39 chickens and wants to have more. Every day she collects between 40 and 50 eggs. Clean the coop early, check water and feed and the rate of production. In addition, she weaves textiles and supervises 100 hives of the stingless melipona bee, a species endemic to the region and whose honey is of precious value.
A group of 217 producers, of which there are 19 in Maní, formed the Kikiba Collective (something very good, in Mayan) and whose seal, a chicken, goes on each unit.
The program seeks to strengthen local livelihoods, thus alleviating hunger, poor nutrition due to lack of animal protein, and low income due to lack of market access.
In Mani, three quarters of its 6,129 inhabitants suffer from poverty and a fifth, its extreme degree.
Each participant receives training on installing chicken coops in their backyards, animal care, and business management. Each year she replaces the batch of 50 birds she receives and transfers hers to a new member, until the birds stop laying and then the women consume them in their homes or sell them in local markets.
The program has covered 796 producers and the goal is 1,000 in 2026. The Kikiba Collective delivers 4,300 free-range eggs every week to two restaurants of a well-known Mexican restaurant chain in Mérida, the capital of Yucatán. In addition, it sells at retail and allocates 30% to family consumption.
At first, Nancy Interiano, Chan’s neighbor, was not interested in the project, but her friend convinced her to check it out. Today, the small businesswoman, 43 years old, married with three children, owns 60 laying hens.
“Seeing the result, other women show interest in entering and those who are already there want to increase their chicken coops. With our knowledge and experience, we advise the new ones,” he told IPS.
In Mexico, 14.7 million women They live in rural areasrepresenting almost 23% of all women in the country and 12% of the total population of Mexico.
Due to the lack of sufficient suppliers of laying hens, breeders have limitations to satisfy a growing demand.
While it is not in their hands to resolve this deficit, Chan and Interiano enjoy every day watching their chickens peck the ground, climb wooden beams or settle into the nests to lay the eggs that have changed their lives.
ED: EG
By Emilio Godoy IPS
How does the integration of traditional knowledge and modern training impact food security in the Yucatán?
Esteads. The program not only improves individual livelihoods but also fosters a sense of community and cooperation among participants.
Maya Flora Chan’s story reflects the resilience and resourcefulness of the rural women involved in these initiatives. By leveraging traditional agricultural practices and modern training, they are breaking the cycle of poverty and creating sustainable food sources for their families and communities.
The communities in the Yucatán, faced with significant challenges such as high poverty rates and food insecurity, are adapting to these conditions through collaboration and innovation. Initiatives like the Kikiba Collective not only produce nutritious food but also enhance the economic stability of the participants, showcasing the transformative power of community-driven agricultural practices.
the integration of traditional knowledge with modern agricultural techniques is essential in addressing food security and poverty in regions like the Yucatán. The efforts of local farmers and collectors highlight the importance of community resilience in overcoming economic adversity while preserving their cultural identity and sustainable practices.
