The Food for Survival
My name is Jonia Leite Soares. In 2016, I was invited to attend the Terra Madre event in Turin and I was so inspired at that time to see small-scale food producers around the world to gather and connect with each other in a way that made me feel very special. I was amazed when witnessing how Indigenous delegates were able to present their product, and share their stories with pride and passion.
The inspiration is so powerful and I believe that we all can make a contribution to create a better world and it starts at the moment once we take actions. Thus, I initiated the project to preserve and promote the traditional food in March 2022 with the aim to connect the local Narai Community that still holds knowledge about local food product with youth and other Slow Food communities, and to offer the people in the community with necessary support for collaboration to preserve their knowledge and transmit to others, especially younger generations. Laleia, where Narai Community is located, is a small town in the Municipality of Manatuto, which is located to the east of the capital city of Timor-Leste. This town is well known for its rice production, sago, tamarind (famous spices used in almost all recipes), corn cereals and other seasonal products.
With these crops, unique recipes have been developed and practiced. However, unfortunately, many of the recipes are gradually forgotten. This is because the recipes are mostly practiced by elders while many young people moved to the city to pursue better opportunities in terms of education and jobs. A gap has thus emerged.
For me, food is more than feeding our hunger. Our food is with distinct stories to contribute to the formation of our identity and make us unique and different from others. Therefore, it is very critical to support the community to reestablish the sense of pride about our identity through revealing the stories of our food. This is a process to preserve biodiversity, as well as to restore food sovereignty. Once we are confident enough with our identity and traditional food, we will be able to further develop our own local product and to improve the livelihood in the community. Luckily enough, I have a partner from Laleia, who shares the same vision to support local communities to preserve and promote traditional food that is rich in history.
There are many ways of cooking with the use of corn as the main ingredient in the Timorese traditional cuisine. Despite its simplicity, we decided to present this recipe of corn powder because it plays a unique role in sustaining the Timorese communities in the struggle to survive the long dry season, as well as a critical role in supporting the guerrilla freedom fighters in the jungle during the long-lasting war time people had suffered from. Moreover, the corn powder can be served mixed with various ingredients like honey, milk, ripe bananas and pumpkins, depending on one’s preference and availability. It’s with the flexibility just like people’s capacity of adjusting to survive. Therefore, for us, this is a taste of survival, resistance and most meaningful freedom.
Jonia Leite Soares
Leader of Timor Leste Coffee Coalition
New Zealand Manaaki Scholar at AUT
Business Mentor
Tourism Coordinator