FORESTS and trees contribute to food security and well-being through the provision of ecological services, foods, income generation options and habitat for wildlife. Since well before the agricultural revolution, forest foods and tree products have been an important part of diets.

During the prehistoric age our ancestors hunted and foraged in the forest for food while living in harmony with nature. Even today, forests continue to provide essential nutrition for millions of people around the world, but this role is often overlooked.

Foods from forests include leaves, seeds, nuts, tubers, barks, fruits, mushrooms, honey, herbs, insects and wild animals.

These are rich in micronutrients and are an important contribution to diet diversity and nutrition. Tree foods are often organic and rich sources of vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats and other nutrients. Mopane worms, for example, have a higher protein content than red meat, and the edible leaves of baobab are loaded with calcium. More than 90 percent of households in the country still rely on firewood for preparing their food.

Forest foods like edible insects are traditionally consumed in many countries, including Zimbabwe, and have the potential to contribute to food security. People from a wide range of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds harvest or buy forest foods. Results from the 2020 Rural Livelihoods Assessment by Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (ZimVAC, 2020) indicated that 74,3 percent of households consumed wild-harvested edible insects.

In addition to providing food directly, a multitude of forest products are sold for income that can be used to purchase a variety of products, including food. For example, the contribution of mopane worms to people’s livelihoods has become so important in Matabeleland South that their outbreaks create seasonal employment for locals and value chain players. During mopane worm season, the mopane woodlands showcase how important forests are to food security and nutrition.

During times of shock-like drought, famine or when agriculture fails, forests and trees provide safety nets for rural subsistence and food security.

Some forest foods are not the food of choice in good times, but they can be lifesaving reserves in times of food scarcity. Different trees or shrubs or different parts of the same plant may be eaten during famines. For example, during periods of extended drought, people in Gwanda south resort to eating “isitshwala or ilambazi” from uMtopi tree (Shepard’s tree or Boscia albitrunca).

The roots are dug up, dried, pounded into powder, then prepared into porridge. The roots and nuts of many trees are rich in calories but often require a great deal of processing to make them edible.

Forests contribute to food production in several indirect ways. Providing ecosystem services that regulate functions that produce food and services that can be utilised to maximise crop and livestock production.

Forests are an essential part of watershed management. They affect the hydrologic behaviour of a watershed including the quantity and quality of streamflow, erosion and sedimentation. A healthy watershed enables healthy soils, conserves water, supports streams, rivers, lakes and underground water sources which are important in agriculture and other food systems like fishing.

As it rains, trees and forests in watersheds reduce storm runoff and prevent soil and water degradation, thus protecting soils and water resources crucial to agriculture. Their leaf canopies help reduce erosion caused by falling rain by capturing and storing rainfall in the canopy and releasing water into the atmosphere through evapotranspiration.

Roots take up water and together with dead leaves create conditions that promote soil infiltration. The biodiverse ecosystem created by such watersheds provides safe drinking water and food for humans.

Agroforestry is a land-use management system in which trees or shrubs are grown around or among crops or pastureland to take advantage of their symbiotic interactions and improve agricultural productivity.

It provides a variety of healthy foods that diversify diets and address seasonal food and nutritional gaps. Agroforestry greatly increases the yield in the field, increases soil organic matter, soil filtration and improves fertility.

In addition, trees in agroforestry increase the soil’s ability to absorb and retain water, produce nutrients for plants through nitrogen fixation, maintain high levels of organic matter in the soil, and moderate soil temperatures.
Plants and trees provide fodder, which allows communities to raise livestock that produces milk and meat that are essential to their health.

Moreover, they contribute to soil fertility by providing green manure.

Despite all of this, forests remain largely misunderstood and underappreciated as a provider of food and nutrition for humans. Forest resources are being lost at a rate of 262 000 hectares per year mainly due to extensive agriculture and other activities related to agriculture such as cutting trees for tobacco curing and overstocking. The alarming rates of deforestation coupled with unsustainable industrial production systems threaten the contributions of forests and tree-based agriculture systems to food security, diets and nutrition.

As forests disappear, agriculture production and other food systems will eventually be negatively impacted.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) state that; food production systems need to be sustainable through implementing resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production while maintaining ecosystems that strengthen capacity to adapt to climate change.

Zimbabwe joined the rest of the world to celebrate World Food Day last Saturday.  The day helps raise awareness on different aspects of food security and sustainable agriculture including climate change and biodiversity.

The theme for this year is; Our actions are our future- better production, a better environment and a better life.

With food security and nutrition high on the agenda of development, it is crucial to understand the contribution of the well managed natural environment to a food secure and nutrition-sensitive future.

Forests and agro-ecology need to feature more prominently in agricultural systems and the connected challenge of forest management. This improved understanding will be essential for building on synergies and minimizing trade-offs among forest conservation, sustainable agriculture and other development activities.

Mixed agroforestry production regimens that can help to avoid environmental degradation should be encouraged for their use in diverse production systems.

Fortunes Matutu is a forester with the Forestry Commission and has a special interest in social forestry.