What is in a name? Yams

There are about 600 different species of yam (Dioscorea species). However, three species (D. alata, D. cayenensis-rotundata, and D. trifida) are considered to be the primary yam species consumed in the Tropics.

Below are some of the common names for the species, Dioscorea alata :

 

Source

Going to the Market with a Dollar in Kenya

When talking about global poverty, it is common to encounter a statistic about how X many people live on less than a dollar a day. The "dollar a day" metric for the international poverty line originated in the World Bank's 1990 World Development Report. In this report, the researchers found that the poverty lines in a few of the developing countries that they examined clustered around a dollar in purchasing power parity. The poverty line was meant to mark the minimum amount needed a person to feed, clothe, and provide shelter for her/himself. Today, the new international poverty line is at $1.25 a day.

Even though this definition of the poverty line has flaws (measuring absolute poverty rather than relative poverty) and these videos have some flaws (no haggling at the market?), I think this series provides an interesting look at food markets in many countries around the world.

For more about the poverty line, I recommend this article from The Economist, On the poverty line.

Going to the Market with a Dollar in Guatemala

For the next several days, I'm going to feature some videos from the World Food Program where one of their employees goes to a market and sees what the equivalent of one U.S. dollar will buy. Although the videos don't seem to show any haggling, I think they are a good illustration of food markets, differing regional cuisines, and difficulties faced the poor in affording nutritionally balanced food.

Today's video is of a market in Guatemala.

According to the FAO, the top 10 crops produced in Guatemala (by quantity) in 2008 were sugar cane, bananas, maize (corn), potatoes, other melons (inc. cantaloupes, but not watermelon), tomatoes, cow milk, coffee, pineapples, and plantains.

Source: FAOSTAT

Crop Diversity

The other day, my super cool friend and future Explorer, Kate and I had a conversation about linguistic diversity and some of the issues related to and benefits of preserving that diversity. Similar to the recent and rapid decline of linguistic diversity, plant diversity (of both domesticated and wild species) is also being threatened.

The July issue of the National Geographic Magazine had an interesting article about the dwindling diversity of many domesticated crop and animal species and efforts being taken to preserve and protect that diversity. Declining diversity among many commonly eaten foods is pictured in the diagram below.

Source: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/07/food-ark/food-variety-graphic

 

 

 

Read part of the article after the break

NYTimes highlights Mango Recipes

Isn't it typical that just days after I profile the mango, the New York Times does the same thing?

Foreign Policy also features an interesting slideshow of street food from various places around the world. To view all the photos click here.

Street Eats

From Cairo to Indonesian volcanoes, the way the world eats out.

APRIL 25, 2011

Enjoying a watermelon at the bazaar in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, 400 kilometers east of the capital, Riyadh, on May 16, 2008.

AFP/Getty Images

Even in the midst of violence in Ivory Coast, locals shopped at markets in Abidjan’s Koumassi district on April 12, 2011.

SIA KAMBOU/AFP/Getty Images

A Palestinian youth sells strawberries on Feb. 16 in Jerusalem's Old City Muslim quarter.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images

A Nepalese vendor sells food from a roadside stall in Bhaktapur, some 12 kilometers southeast of Kathmandu on Feb. 16.

PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP/Getty Images

A fruit seller stands by his roadside shop in Mumbai on Sept. 16, 2010.

PUNIT PARANJPE/AFP/Getty Images 

Rising Food Prices

For the past several months, much has been written, both in the U.S. and abroad, about rising food prices. Volatility in food prices is especially detrimental for people in developing countries where the poor can spend up to 80 percent of their income on food.

 

Business

17 April 2011 Last updated at 04:54 ET

World Bank president: 'One shock away from crisis'

The president of the World Bank has warned that the world is "one shock away from a full-blown crisis".

Robert Zoellick cited rising food prices as the main threat to poor nations who risk "losing a generation".
He was speaking in Washington at the end of the spring meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Food price changes Q1 2010 to Q1 2011
Source: World Bank Development Prospects Group
Maize	74%
Wheat	69%
Palm oil	55%
Soybeans	36%
Beef	30%
Rice	-2%

Meanwhile, G20 finance chiefs, who also met in Washington, pledged financial support to help new governments in the Middle East and North Africa.

Mr Zoellick said such support was vital.

"The crisis in the Middle East and North Africa underscores how we need to put the conclusions from our latest world development report into practice. The report highlighted the importance of citizen security, justice and jobs," he said.

He also called for the World Bank to act quickly to support reforms in the region.
"Waiting for the situation to stabilise will mean lost opportunities. In revolutionary moments the status quo is not a winning hand."

At the Washington meetings, turmoil in the Middle East, volatile oil prices and high unemployment were also discussed.

IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn raised particular concerns about high levels of unemployment among young people. "It's probably too much to say that it's a jobless recovery, but it's certainly a recovery with not enough jobs," he said. "Especially because of youth unemployment... there is now a risk that this will be turned into a life sentence, and that there is a possibility of a lost generation," he said.

The Majestic Mango

Some History

Mango, Mangifera indica, is believed to have been domesticated about 4000 years ago around Northeastern India and Southeast Asia. Portuguese traders are largely responsible for introducing mangoes to Africa and Brazil in the 16^th century.

Mango tree

Botany

Mangifera indica L. is a member of the plant family, Anacardiaceae, which contains a number of highly poisonous plants. Sap from mango trees is a potent skin irritant and can cause blistering of the skin.

Mango trees are evergreens that can reach heights of 90ft (~27.5 meters) and widths of 80 ft (~24.5m). During flowering, mature trees are covered in hundreds of small white flowers, about ¼ inch wide when open. Most flowers are imperfect and function as males to provide pollen for pollination, while the rest are perfect flowers, containing both female and male plant reproductive structures. The perfect flowers are the ones that can set fruit.

Source

Fruit can be round, ovate, or obovate and can weigh in the range of ¼ pound to 3 pounds (.11-1.36kg). Immature fruit has green skin that turns yellow, red, orange, purple or some combination of those colors as it matures. The fruit contains a single seed that is flattened and sticks to the fruit flesh surrounding it.  

Production 

In 2008, the top mango producers (according to the FAO) were India, China and Thailand. In addition to being the largest producer of mangoes, India also has over 1,000 different varieties and mango is sometimes regarded as the "king of fruits."

	countries	item	element	2008
	World + (Total)	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	34889014
1	India	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	13649400
2	China	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	3976716
3	Thailand	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	2374165
4	Indonesia	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	2013123
5	Mexico	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	1855359
6	Pakistan	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	1753686
7	Brazil	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	1154649
8	Philippines	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	884011
9	Bangladesh	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	802750
10	Nigeria	Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas	Production (tonnes)	734000

Source

Importance

Beyond being delicious, mango is a good source of Vitamin A. Vitamin A deficiency is the leading cause of preventable blindness in children and is especially problematic in Africa and Southeast Asia, regions with mangoes.

Vitamin A content (Source)

Level	ug retinol equivalent/kg	Crops
Medium	<500 ug	guava, kumquat, mandarin
High	<4000 ug	apricot, loquat, orange-fleshed melon, papaya, persimmon
Red pepper	6000 ug
Mango	12500 ug

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Nutrition

“Raw mango consists of about 81.7% water, 17% carbohydrate, 0.5% protein, 0.3% fat, and 0.5% ash. A 100 g (3.5 oz) serving of raw mango has 65 calories and about half the vitamin C found in oranges. Mango contains more vitamin A than most fruits.” (Crop Master Knowledge).

Mangoes of different shapes and colors - Source