Makhosi Mahlangu: Our food, our heritage, our future

HUMA Book Lunch Series

Author: Makhosi Mahlangu (Lupane State University, Zimbabwe) 
Discussant: Chef Njathi Kabui (United States)

Abstract: Makhosi examines traditional African foods (TAFs) in Zimbabwe and discusses the evolution of these foods through migration patterns. TAFs were widely consumed before colonization. The surge in the intake of sugar and oil-rich meals has had a negative impact on the present African generation, which has a high rate of obesity. To move forward, it is necessary to examine prior food systems. There has also been a decrease in the nutritional diversity score in modern food trends, despite the fact that our forebears had a variety of grains to pick from, including sorghum, pearl millet, and finger millet. The glycemic index (GI) value of these cereals usually is low. There was a broader variety of proteins and micronutrients available, including venison, domesticated animals, insects, lentils, gourds, vegetables, and underground tubers. The indigenous people of Zimbabwe currently consume over 40 different indigenous fruit trees. The indigenous fruit sector is still in its infancy, with just a few fruits of economic value, such as marula, baobab, horned melon, and prickly pear. As Africans, we should be aware that our consumption of fermented foods like fermented milk (ihiqa), fermented meat (inyama evundileyo), and amasi (cottage cheese) has decreased dramatically. Fermented foods have a vital function in gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) by favouring the growth of normal bacterial flora over pathogenic species. An African Food Revolution is required for Africans to transition from sugary diets to balanced meals that contain all critical elements, including probiotics and prebiotics. See book (via Amazon, independently published, 2020)

 Read Chapter 1 of the book
^{Extracts made available with the kind permission of the author.}

About the author: Makhosi Mahlangu is the future of traditional African foods (TAFs), a foodie, a chef, a farmer, an academic and a pantsula for life. He has a strong background in food processing, novel food designs, modern culinary trends, sustainable food trends and science acumen in TAFs. He comes from a village called Sivalo in Nkayi District (Zimbabwe), one of the world's most food-insecure regions. He obtained a BSc in Food Science and Technology at the University of Zimbabwe. After completing his first degree, he worked in numerous restaurants in South Africa as a waiter, which helped build his insatiable hunger for food development. He next completed a BSc(Hons) in Animal Science and Rangeland Management with the Lupane State University, Zimbabwe and an MSc in Animal Science at the University of Fort Hare, South Africa. He then went to Italy to study an MSc in Food and Beverage Innovation and Management with the Universita Politecnica delle Marche in Ancona, a three-hour drive from Parma. Parma has always been a food city, a capital of food: located in the heart of the Food Valley, in the Emilia-Romagna region, the European region with the highest number of products with the labels Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). Makhosi has intrinsic knowledge of Italian food systems. He has worked in numerous countries, from Botswana to South Africa to Zimbabwe to Zambia to Spain to Italy. He is involved in multiple projects, such as the Amagugu Food Expo in Zimbabwe and the Traditional African Food and Agriculture Expo in Kinshasa, DRC. He is currently lecturing in Food Science at Lupane State University in Lupane, Zimbabwe, with a strong focus on traditional African foods. He is the founder of the African Food Revolution, an organisation concerned with food production on the African continent.