Feed Our Children Our Own Foods
Our community advocates for the integration of traditional, locally sourced foods into public programs to nourish children and preserve cultural heritage for future generations.
By Devisingh Solanki · Alirajpur
Responds to — lack of traditional nutritious food for children
Our culture is our pride. We live together, preserving our language, dialect, and customs. It’s essential that our Adivasi customs, like worshipping trees and roots, are protected and remain alive for our future generations. Our culture should support all living beings, animals, and human life through their joys and sorrows on earth.
For us, this also means coming together. We celebrate festivals by taking turns with relatives and eat food together within the family. The community gathers for important moments, and we use our resources for necessary work in the home and family.
But our children are not eating well because the nutritious foods we eat locally—like dal, bhaji, jowar roti, and bajra roti—are not provided in schools and Anganwadis. We believe that seasonal fruits like guava, black plum, mango, and traditional millets such as Kodo and Little millet, along with Bandi ka halwa, should be added to forest food products, PDS, and MDM. This isn't just about feeding them; it's about keeping our culture alive and ensuring our future generations thrive with the nourishment they know.
The recipe
Advocate for and integrate traditional, locally consumed nutritious foods and seasonal forest products into children's diets and public food programs.
Traditional foodsCultural preservationChild nutritionCommunity well-beingIndigenous knowledgeFood sovereignty
