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Article
Publication date: 18 March 2019

Solomon Workneh Fanta and Satheesh Neela

This paper is a systemic review on enset plant’s role in Ethiopian people’s life as the source of food. This paper aims to summarize the traditional processing and preparation…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper is a systemic review on enset plant’s role in Ethiopian people’s life as the source of food. This paper aims to summarize the traditional processing and preparation methods of enset-based foods and their nutritional composition.

Design/methodology/approach

Available scientific articles were collected and reviewed for enset plant evaluation, description, enset plant’s role in Ethiopian people’s food security, post harvesting and traditional processing of enset plants, microbiology of the fermented enset foods, different foods reported from enset, nutritional profile of the three food from enset base (kocho, bulla and amicho) and other non-food applications of enset plant.

Findings

Enset plant has a predominant role in people living in the southern part of Ethiopia. This plant is drought-tolerant and provides many non-food applications. Harvesting of the enset plant, preparing for fermentation and food preparations follow the traditional route by using the indigenous knowledge and practices. Limited studies have been reported on the microbiology of the enset fermentation, but various types of microbes have been reported. In case of nutritional composition, foods from enset are reported to contain high carbohydrate and minerals content, such as calcium, potassium and zinc, but limited protein content; they are also the best source of the essential amino acids such as lysine and leucine. Limited data are available on vitamins, anti-oxidant and fatty acids profiles of enset-based foods. The existing data indicate variations, and the reasons for variability are discussed in this paper.

Originality/value

Scientific reviews on enset food nutrition profile and related issues are scarce; this paper will compile information about enset plant-based foods for researchers for their future research.

Details

Nutrition & Food Science, vol. 49 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 May 2021

Tamagn Urgo Woyesa and Satinder Kumar

This is a conceptual study to analyze the potential of enset-based culinary tourism for sustainable rural development and to obtain a place as a niche tourism market in…

Abstract

Purpose

This is a conceptual study to analyze the potential of enset-based culinary tourism for sustainable rural development and to obtain a place as a niche tourism market in South-Western Ethiopia. It assumed enset agro-biodiversity as the effect of ages of environment, genetic resources and cultural interaction as a distinctive regional image.

Design/methodology/approach

This an exploratory paper based on an in-depth interview, field observation and content analysis of documents. By means of in-depth interviews, the researchers managed to gather extended information from community elders and experts in culture and tourism offices selected based on a snowball technique. Besides, it has gone through systematic reviews of about 180 empirical and conceptual articles, books and conference papers with a critical reading of the content, identification of categories, examination and interpretation of ideas, to supplement the in-depth-interview. The thematic analysis applied to identify various ideas, concepts, categories and relationships to produce themes presented under discussion and results.

Findings

The study found enset-based culinary tourism not only improve the local economy and regional image, but also it would enhance conservation of traditional farming system, biodiversity, food heritages, genetic varieties and livestock. It also identified 18 enset food varieties compatible with the principle of balanced diets. Finally, the study advised rural development planners to consider enset-based culinary tourism so that it would revive lost food traditions and consumption patterns, enhance the regional heritage and destination branding.

Research limitations/implications

The research is a conceptual study that lacked empirical investigation concerning the livelihood impact, gender implication and actual tourist data. Therefore, future research needs to focus on the aforementioned limitations.

Practical implications

This study addressed SW Ethiopia, which is the primary center of Ensete ventricosum, and argued that enset-based culinary tourism would help to build regional image and obtain a place as a niche rural tourism destination. It would also contribute to the conservation of food heritages, environmentally sustainable farming system, soil conservation, crop diversities and livestock population in addition to producing tourist experience. Moreover, it would encourage the revival of traditional consumption, reinvent lost food traditions and identities.

Social implications

It was hoped that rural tourism would eventually improve the livelihood and enhance the capability of resilience. It is also expected to maintain the traditional social-economic structure based on the enset farm while fostering cultural development.

Originality/value

To the knowledge of the researchers there is no previous work on enset based-culinary tourism in Ethiopia and probably there is no published culinary tourism paper elsewhere.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 12 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

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