The Role of Local Cuisine: Building Nutritional Adequacy and Food Security of Indigenous Communities

Abstract

India, one of the 12 mega-biodiversity countries, hosts a rich diversity of traditional and wild foods. The indigenous knowledge of these foods is vital for sustaining their utilization and enhancing sustainable nutrition security. However, tribal communities face significant challenges, including malnutrition driven by poor food and nutrition outcomes, limited access to water, health and sanitation services, income poverty, and gaps in nutrition security. Modernization and settled agriculture have shifted tribal diets toward processed foods, reducing indigenous diet diversity, weakening nutrition, and increasing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as type 2 diabetes and obesity. This nutrition transition, combined with sedentary lifestyles, has led to underutilization of more than half of traditional food resources. Addressing these challenges requires direct nutrition interventions and multi-sectoral approaches that integrate food security, health, and poverty reduction strategies. Effective interventions should utilize locally available resources, build pride in cultural food systems, strengthen community capacity, and foster inter-project communication. Supportive policies, infrastructure development, poverty alleviation programs, and active community organizations are essential for success. Future strategies should focus on developing nutrition gardens, conserving biodiversity, documenting indigenous knowledge, and promoting community biodiversity management. Strengthening in-situ and ex-situ conservation, encouraging transdisciplinary research, and offering fellowships to attract researchers will further enhance impact. Reviving traditional food systems and mainstreaming them into dietary diversification and supplementary feeding programs can improve tribal nutrition security, contribute to biodiversity conservation, and preserve cultural heritage. Such actions align strongly with SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and broader sustainable development goals, fostering both nutritional resilience and cultural preservation.