Understanding and preserving the cultural traditions of farming communities is a key factor in ensuring future food security in Ethiopia and beyond.
Tsedal Wendmu is from Mekelle in Ethiopia. She navigated war in her homeland as well as the pandemic to research factors that promote food security in the face of such crises, along with others such as climate change.
Wendmu focused her research on sorghum, a cereal crop known for its resilience to drought. Sorghum is one of the top five crops grown globally and is a major food source in semi-arid regions – including Ethiopia’s Tigray region. Wendmu documented how local communities in the region maintain different types of the cereal. Different groups in the population grow and share distinct varieties of sorghum, each suited to their unique cultural and environmental needs. This diversity helps to protect the region’s food supply, even in tough climates.
Sharing seeds promotes crop diversity
Wendmu found that the Kunama and Tigrayan people in Ethiopia’s Tigray region approach sorghum farming differently based on their cultural practices - and not just the environmental conditions.
The Kunama people prioritize crop varieties that mature early to ensure food security during shorter growing seasons. The Tigrayans, on the other hand, select varieties with higher yields or larger grain heads. These preferences reflect generations of adaptation to local environments and cultural uses, including special varieties for making staple foods such as injera, the spongy, fermented flatbread that is widely eaten in Ethiopia.
“The choices of the various groups shape which sorghum types survive and thrive in each community,” explains Wendmu.
Farmers believe that no one should be denied seeds, a stance that supports both community bonds and crop diversity. Farmers actively exchange seeds, often within their villages or ethnic groups. Social norms play a significant role here. “In both Kunama and Tigrayan communities, sharing seeds is a deeply rooted practice. The sharing of seeds has led to the blending of genetic traits, as varieties spread and adapt to the conditions where they are sown,” adds the seed system researcher.
A living seed bank
Wendmu’s research reveals how communities maintain sorghum diversity through a balance of cultural tradition and collective action. By swapping seeds through their informal networks, farmers don’t just enhance crop resilience - they create a living ‘seed bank’ that is more adaptable than any centralized and controlled seed storage facility.
The practices of the farmers have allowed different varieties of sorghum, with distinct genetic traits, to evolve and remain viable despite changes in climate.
Local knowledge is crucial
These findings underscore the need for food security strategies that respect and incorporate local knowledge and cultural practices. Instead of imposing uniform solutions, agricultural policies could benefit from supporting farmer-led seed systems and fostering networks that encourage diversity. In the case of sorghum, this might mean developing seed programs that respect and expand upon existing farmer exchanges, or working with local leaders to preserve community-based agricultural practices.
The takeaway of this new research is that, as communities worldwide face more extreme weather and increased demand for food, safeguarding the cultural practices that support crop diversity - such as those of Ethiopia’s Kunama and Tigrayan people – may be a key factor in building resilient, sustainable food systems for all.
Tsedal Asres Wendmu will defend her doctoral thesis Biocultural diversity of sorghum in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia on 19 November in the auditorium of NMBU's Centre for Plant Research in Controlled Climate (SKP). See the event webpage for details.