Reviving and Celebrating Native Food Traditions

Hesci, estonko! (pronounced hes-jay, es-ton-go!) That is Muscogee for ‘hello, how are you?’ I am Amy Warne, a Muscogee, Seminole, and Daughter of Kaccvlke. I’m also the Manager of Nutrition and Health Programs at Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) and one of the 1% of Native Registered and Licensed Dietitians in the U.S.

As part of Native American Heritage Month, I’ve been reflecting on the importance of Indigenous food sovereignty. You may have heard the term and may be wondering what it means. We’ll get there, but first I want to tell you a little bit more about the important role that food plays in Native cultures.

The Roots of Muscogee Farming

Growing up, I always knew I wanted to help people, and I felt a deep connection and love for Native foods. I fondly remember enjoying sofke at family gatherings. Made from white hominy corn, sofke is cooked in water with lye made from wood ash using a process called nixtamalization. This process not only softens the corn but enhances its flavor and nutritional value.

Food and farming are cornerstones of Muscogee life. Traditionally, it was the Muscogee women who surveyed the lands and chose the planting spots each year. Crops were planted from east to west, to greet the Creator with each sunrise. Our farming practices are simple but scientifically proven to protect local ecosystems and preserve biodiversity.

A perfect example of a powerful Native farming practice is what we refer to as the “Three Sisters,” known today as companion planting. The “Three Sisters” are corn, beans, and squash. They are seen as three beautiful sisters because they are planted side-by-side to protect each other. The corn stalk provides support for the beans to grow while the beans give much-needed nitrogen to the corn. The squash acts as a mulch, retaining soil moisture and preventing weeds from growing.

This simple yet sophisticated technique provides long-term soil fertility and is part of the Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) that’s being applied today to reverse soil depletion that’s been caused by modern farming practices like straight-line farming.

Understanding Food Sovereignty and its Connection to Food Security

Food sovereignty is defined as “the right of peoples to healthy and culturally-appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems.”

From 1883 to 1934, our ceremonies, dances, and medicine practices were illegal. We were not allowed to hunt, farm or fish. Our access to seasonal crops was taken along with the intuitive eating we once enjoyed. As a result, many Natives were malnourished, and we’re still dealing with the negative health consequences today.

Approximately 1 in 4 Native Americans experience food insecurity, which is nearly double the national rate. Native Americans are also 1.5 times more likely than non-Hispanic whites to be diagnosed with diabetes. Why? Because access to good food is very limited.

The Navajo Nation for example spans 27,000 square miles but has only 13 grocery stores. That means the average resident must drive three hours to buy fresh produce and other foods available at the grocery store.

Access to local, culturally relevant foods is an important step toward achieving food justice. That’s why there has been a growing, grassroots movement for Indigenous food sovereignty, which seeks to reclaim our cultural ties to our traditional foods – foods we enjoyed before colonization – and reclaim our power in the food system. Restoring our traditional foodways is essential to solving the issue of food insecurity and food inequity. We must rebuild our connections to the land to restore health in our communities.

What we are seeing today is a resurgence of Native Peoples to be fully Native, out loud, for all to see. This is mainly due to the passing of The American Indian Religious Freedom Act, which protected the rights of Natives to exercise our traditional religions and customs.

The power we hold when we step into our Indigeneity is beyond measure. Food sovereignty is about more than just nourishment. It is also a way to heal from the many historical traumas placed on us through colonization. It provides a connection to our ancestors, stories, ecology, and the natural world.

Revitalizing these practices is not only good for us - it improves the lives of everyone in the community, the environment, and can help shape food policy. While Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) have been fighting to keep our traditions alive for many years, I’m really excited to see the food sovereignty movement finally get the attention it deserves and become part of the national conversation.

Celebrating Native American Heritage Month

Some of my favorite ways to celebrate Native American Heritage Month are to cook traditional foods like sofke, participate in annual events like Rock Your Mocs, wear ribbon skirts, read authors such as Tommy Orange and Joy Harjo, and watch films that center Indigenous experiences such as Rutherford Falls, Dark Winds, Prey, and Reservation Dogs (look for me in season 2, episode 5!). Each of these activities helps keep our culture alive.

I hope you will join me in honoring Native American Heritage Month by continuing to learn from, listen to and lift up Indigenous voices. Mvto (pronounced muh-doe). Thank you.