Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Wild edible fruit diversity and its significance in the livelihood of indigenous tribals: Evidence from eastern India

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Food Security Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A number of wild plants, used by rural and tribal populations and contributing significantly to their livelihood and food security have escaped recognition and scientific inquiry. Their distribution, conservation, mode of harvest by locals and optimal use require region-specific assessment in order to integrate them into developmental interventions. This study analyzed the collection, consumption, sale and income from edible forest fruits in 49 tribal villages spread over five districts of Orissa State in eastern India. Density, dominance and diversity of species yielding wild fruit were measured by studying ecological parameters in the sample plots. We estimated an average of 48 fruit plants per hectare of deciduous forests. Fifty-six wild edible fruit species belonging to 40 genera in 26 families were recorded in the study region, many of which have multiple uses. Indigenous fruits formed part of the family diet with average annual consumption of 73 kg per household. Sale of wild fruits contributed 15 % of income for tribal households. Despite their good knowledge of indigenous fruits, the tribal populations have not adopted fruit tree farming which would enhance their nutrition and income.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adebooye, O. C., & Phillips, O. T. (2006). Studies of seed characteristics and chemical composition of three morphotypes of Mucuna urens (L.) Medikus-Fabaceae. Food Chemistry, 95, 658–663.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Anand Kumar, T. C. (2003). Health status of primitive tribes of Orissa. ICMR Bulletin, 33(10), 1–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andersen, L. T., Thilsted, S. H., Nielsen, B. B., & Rangasamy, S. (2003). Food and nutrient intakes among pregnant women in rural Tamil Nadu, South India. Public Health Nutrition, 6, 131–137.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Anonymous, (2008). Food security atlas of rural Orissa. UNWFP. IHD. NewDelhi.

  • Arinathan, V., Mohan, V. R., Britto, A. J. D., & Murugan, C. (2007). Wild edibles used by Palliyars of the Western Ghats, Tamilnadu. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 6(1), 163–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Asfaw, Z., & Tadesse, M. (2001). Prospects for sustainable use and development of indigenous food plants in Ethiopia. Economic Botany, 55(1), 47–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bahuguna, V. K. (2000). Forests in the economy of the rural poor. An estimation of the dependency level. Ambio, 29(3), 126–129.

    Google Scholar 

  • Belcher, B., Ruíz Pérez, M., & Achdiawan, R. (2005). Global patterns and trends in the use and management of commercial NTFPs: implications for livelihoods and conservation. World Development, 33(9), 1435–1452.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, J. (1995). The Hidden Harvest. In Seedling, the quarterly newsletter of Genetic Resources Action International (GRAIN). www.grain.org. Accessed 9 October 2007.

  • Bharucha, Z., & Pretty, J. (2010). The roles and values of wild foods in agricultural systems. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 365, 2913–2926.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Champion, H. G., & Seth, S. K. (1968). Revised survey of the forest types of India. New Delhi: Government of India.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chopra, R. N., Nayar, S. L., & Chopra, I. C. (1986). Glossary of Indian medicinal plants (Reprinted). New Delhi: CSIR.

    Google Scholar 

  • Commission, P. (2008). Eleventh five year plan 2007–12, Vol.1: Inclusive Growth. New Delhi: Government of India.

    Google Scholar 

  • Curtis, J. T., & Cottom, G. (1956). Plant ecology work book: Laboratory field reference manual (p. 193). Minneapolis: Burgess Publishing Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deshmukh, B. S., & Shinde, V. (2010). Fruits in the wilderness: A potential of local food resource. International Journal of Pharma and Bio-Sciences, 1, 1–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dovie, D. K. B., Shackleton, C. M., & Witkowski, E. T. F. (2002). Direct–use values of woodland resources consumed and traded in a South African village. International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology, 9(3), 269–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dwebe, T. P., & Mearns, M. A. (2011). Conserving indigenous knowledge as the key to the current and furure use of traditional vegetables. International Journal of Information Management. doi:10.1016/J.ijinfomgt.2011.02.009.

  • Edison, S., Unnikrishnan, M., Vimala, B., Pillai, S. V., Sheela, M. N., Sreekumari, M. T., et al. (2006). Biodiversity of tropical tuber crops in India. NBA Scientific Bulletin, No. 7 (p. 60). Chennai: National Biodiversity Authority of India.

    Google Scholar 

  • FAO. (2005). Building on gender, agro-biodiversity and local knowledge. A training manual. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farooq, S., & Azam, F. (2002). Food security in the new Millennium -I: The role of agricultural biodiversity. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences, 5(12), 1345–1351.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, M. (2004). Household welfare and forest dependence in Southern Malawi. Environment and Development Economics, 9(2), 135–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ford, J. D., & Berrang-Ford, L. (2009). Food security in Igloolik, Nunavut: An exploratory study. Polar Record, 45, 225–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FSI. (2009). India: State of forest report, 2009. Dehra Dun: Forest Survey of India.

    Google Scholar 

  • Getachew, A., Kelbessa, U., & Dawit, D. (2005). Ethnobotanical study of edible indigenous plants in some selected districts of Ethiopia. Human Ecology, 33(1), 83–118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • GoO. (2004). Human development report, Orissa. Bhubaneswar: P& C Dept. Government of Orissa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guinand, Y., & Dechassa, L. (2000). Indigenous food plants in southern Ethiopia: Reflections on the role of ‘famine foods’ at the time of drought. Addis Ababa: United Nations Emergencies Unit for Ethiopia (UNEUE).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hardin, G. (1968). The tragedy of the commons. Science, 162, 1243–1248.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, F. M. A., & Mohammed, S. (2003). Relying on nature: Wild foods in Northern Nigeria. Ambio, 32, 24–29.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, L. M., Patterson, L., Twine, W. (2009). HIV/AIDS, Food Security and the Role of the Natural Environment: Evidence from the Agincourt Health and Demographic Surveillance Site in Rural South Africa: Working Paper on Population Programme. Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado at Boulder.

  • Jaccard, P. (1908). Nouvelles recherches sur la distribution florale. Bulletin de la Societe Vaudoise des Sciences Naturelles, 44, 223–270.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kamnga, P., Vedeld, P., & Sjaastad, E. (2009). Forest incomes and rural livelihoods in Chridzulu district, Malawi. Ecological Economics, 68(3), 613–624.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kebu, B., & Fassil, K. (2006). Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Derashe and Kucha Districts. South Ethiopia. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 2, 53. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-2-53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuhnlein, H., Erasmus, B., & Spigelski, D. (2009). Indigenous peoples’ food systems. Rome: FAO. Centre for Indigenous People’s Nutrition and Environment.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lockett, C. T., Calvert, C. C., & Grivetti, L. E. (2000). Energy and micronutrient composition of dietary and medicinal wild plants consumed during drought. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, 51, 195–208.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mahapatra, A. K., & Mitchell, C. P. (1997). Sustainable development of non-timber forest products: Implication for forest management in India. Forest Ecology and Management, 94(1–3), 15–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahapatra, A. K., & Panda, P. C. (2009). Wild edible fruit plants of Eastern India (p. 341). Bhubaneswar: Regional Plant Resource Centre.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mahapatra, A. K., Albers, H. J., & Robinson, E. J. Z. (2005). The impact of NTFP sales on rural households’ cash income in India’s dry deciduous forest. Environmental Management, 35, 258–265.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Maikhuri, R. K., Rao, K. S., & Krishna, G. S. (2004). Bioprospecting of wild edibles for rural development in the Central Himalayan Mountains of India. Mountain Research and Development, 24(2), 110–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McSweeny, K. (2004). Forest product sale as financial insurance: Evidence from smallholders. ODI Wildlife Policy Briefing, 10, 1–4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mishra, S., Swain, S., Chaudhury, S. S., & Ray, T. (2009). Wild edible tubers (Dioscorea spp.) and their contribution to the food security of tribes of Jeypore tract, Orissa, India. PGR Newsletter, 156, 63–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Misra, S., Maikhuri, R. K., Kala, C. P., Rao, K. S., & Saxena, K. G. (2008). Wild leafy vegetables: A study of their subsistence dietetic support to the inhabitants of Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, India. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 4, 15. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-4-15.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mithöfer, D., & Waibel, H. (2004). Seasonal vulnerability to poverty and indigenous fruit use in Zimbabwe. Rural Poverty Reduction through Research for Development and Transformation conference. Deutscher Tropentag, October 5–7, 2004. Berlin, University of Hannover.

  • Mohapatra, S. P., & Sahoo, H. P. (2010). The status and use of tree biomass in the tribal village ecosystem of Bolangir District, Orissa, India. African Journal of Plant Science, 4(11), 445–450.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mojeremane, W., & Tshwenyane, S. O. (2004). Azanza garckeana: A valuable edible indigenous fruit tree of Botswana. Pakistan Journal of Nutrition, 3(5), 264–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MSSRF. (2008). Report on the state of food insecurity in rural India (p. 243). Chennai: M S Swaminathan Research Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mueller-Dombois, D., & Ellenberg, M. (1974). Aims and methods of vegetation ecology. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Narendran, K., Murthy, I. K., Suresh, H. S., Dattaraja, H. S., Ravindranath, N. H., & Sukumar, R. (2001). Non-timber forest product extraction, utilization and valuation: A case study from the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, Southern India. Economic Botany, 55(4), 528–538.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Padhi, S., Panigrahi, N., & Mishra, A. K. (2006). Tribal population and chronic poverty in Orissa: A note on the north–south divide. New Delhi: CPRC and IIPA. Working Paper 27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pal, D. C., & Banerjee, D. K. (1971). Some less known plant foods among the tribals of Andhra Pradesh and Orissa states. Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India, 13, 221–223.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pandey, A., Tomer, A. K., Bhandari, D. C., & Pareek, S. K. (2007). Towards collection of wild relatives of crop plants in India. Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution, 55(2), 187–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parmar, C., & Kaushal, M. K. (1982). Wild fruits of the Sub-Himalayan Region. New Delhi: Kalyani Publishers (Rep Edn).

    Google Scholar 

  • Pastor, A., & Gustavo, F. S. (2007). Edible wild plants of the Chorote Indians, Gran Chaco, Argentina. Botanical Journal of the Linnaean Society, 153, 73–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pauline, M., & Linus, W. (2004). Status of indigenous fruits in Kenya. In Chikamai, B., Eyog-Matig, O., Mbogga, M. (Ed), Review and appraisal on the status of Indigenous fruits in Eastern Africa: A synthesis report for IPGRI-SAFORGEN. http://www.bioversity international.org Accessed 11 July 2007

  • Rashid, A., Anand, V. K., & Serwar, J. (2008). Less known wild edible plants used by the Gujjar tribe of district rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir State. International Journal of Botany, 4, 219–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rathore, M. (2009). Nutrient content of important fruit trees from arid zone of Rajasthan. Journal of Horticulture and Forestry, 1, 103–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rawat, S. M., Pant, G., Sarla, B., Negi, Y. S., & Badoni, S. (1994). Biochemical investigation of some common wild fruits in Garhwal Himalaya. Progressive Horticulture, 26, 35–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reddy, C. S., Pattanaik, C., Mohapatra, A., & Biswal, A. K. (2007a). Phytosociological observations on tree diversity of tropical forest of Similipal Biosphere Reserve, Orissa, India. Taiwania, 52(4), 352–359.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reddy, K. N., Patnaik, C., Reddy, C. S., & Raju, V. S. (2007b). Traditional knowledge on wild food plants in Andhra Pradesh. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 6(1), 223–229.

    Google Scholar 

  • Redzic, S. J. (2007). Wild edible plants and their traditional use in the human nutrition in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 45(3), 189–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruel, M. T., Minot, N., Smith, L. (2005). Patterns and determinants of fruit and vegetable consumption in sub-Saharan Africa: a multi-country comparison. Background paper for the joint FAO/WHO Workshop, 1–3 September 2004, Kobe, Japan. World Health Organization.

  • Sankaran, M., Prakash, J., Singh, N. P., & Suklabaidya, A. (2006). Wild edible fruits of Tripura. Natural Product Radiance, 5(4), 302–305.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saxena, H. O., & Brahmam, M. (1994–96). Flora of Orissa, Vol. 1–4, Regional Research Laboratory & Orissa Forest Development Corporation, Bhubaneswar.

  • Scherr, S. J., White, A., Kaimowitz, D. (2004). A new agenda for forest conservation and poverty reduction: Making markets work for low income producers. Washington DC, Forest Trends & Jakarta, Indonesia, CIFOR.

  • Shackleton, C., & Shackleton, S. (2004). The importance of non-timber forest products in rural livelihood security and as safety nets: a review of evidence from South Africa. South African Journal of Science, 100(11–12), 658–664.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shrestha, P. M., & Dhillon, S. S. (2006). Diversity and traditional knowledge concerning wild food species in a locally managed forest in Nepal. Agroforestry Systems, 66, 55–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singh, H. B., & Arora, R. K. (1978). Wild edible plants of India (p. 88). New Delhi: Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh, D. B., Attri, B. L., Sharma, T. V. R. S., & Sreekumar, P. V. (2001). Nutrient composition of some wild edible fruits of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Journal of Applied Horticulture, 3(1), 60–62.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sinha, R., & Lakra, V. (2005). Wild tribal food plants of Orissa. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 4(3), 246–252.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sneath, P. H. A., & Sokal, R. R. (1973). Numerical taxonomy: Principles and practice of numerical classification (p. 573). San Francisco: Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sundriyal, M., & Sundriyal, R. C. (2001). Wild edible plants of the Sikkim Himalaya: Nutritive values of selected species. Economic Botany, 55(3), 377–390.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sundriyal, M., Sundriyal, R. C., & Sharma, E. (2004). Dietary use of wild plant resources in the Sikkim Himalaya, India. Economic Botany, 58(4), 626–638.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Takasaki, Y., Barham, B. L., & Coomes, O. T. (2004). Risk coping strategies in tropical forests: Floods, illnesses, and resource extraction. Environment and Development Economics, 9, 203–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Victoria, R. G., Tomas, H., Vincent, V., William, L., & David, W. (2006). Cultural, practical and economic value of wild plants: A quantitative study in the Bolivian Amazon. Economic Botany, 60, 62–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgement

We are grateful to the respondents for sharing their wisdom to enrich our understanding of nature. Our thanks to Sri P. K. Acharya, Research Associate, Regional Plant Resource Centre for assistance in data analysis and Sri S. P. Panda and Sri P. K. Nayak, Research Fellows for data collection.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Regional Plant Resource Center, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India

    Ajay K. Mahapatra & Pratap C. Panda

Authors
  1. Ajay K. Mahapatra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Pratap C. Panda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ajay K. Mahapatra.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mahapatra, A.K., Panda, P.C. Wild edible fruit diversity and its significance in the livelihood of indigenous tribals: Evidence from eastern India. Food Sec. 4, 219–234 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-012-0186-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-012-0186-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation