Buying local: Better for bodies, the environment, and the economy

No wonder they’re in demand; Local grains taste better too.

It is a cry commonly overheard in the souks of Old Sana’a: “We want the local grain, and not anything else!” Shoppers in Sana’a prefer to buy local grains because they believe them to be more nutritious than imported grains.
Their beliefs are not unfounded. “Locally grown grains have more vitamins, minerals, and salts than imported grains,” says Dr. Touqan Nasher, a general practitioner working in Sana’a at the al-Thawra Hospital. 

Grains and other foods grown in small, diverse, grass-based family farms is a much healthier alternative to the food churned out by industrial factory farms that have been correctly blamed for pollution, cruel treatment of animals and production of low-quality food, according to recent research.  Consumers can take charge of their own health by buying food from local farmers, food that has been grown without pesticides, artificial fertilizers, and herbicides. In addition, food dollars spent at home are a huge boost to the local economy.  But this preference has an additional benefit perhaps consumers have not yet considered.

When grains or other foods are imported from other countries, thousands of gallons of fuel must be used to transport them from place to place. This energy consumption spews more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and contributes to the planet’s already runaway climate change.  It is thus environmentally more responsible to purchase fruits, vegetables, grains and other products that are grown locally.  It also helps assure food security to buy local grains. Those trucked in from other countries are more vulnerable to tampering and contamination. Of course, the only way to be sure that your food is safe is to grow it yourself—which many rural Yemenis do. And the longer food travels to get to your plate, the less fresh it is.

Fresher food contains more vitamins. So, the closer we eat to our food sources, the better fed we will be. Ali al-Mudhwahi, the Head of Family Health Unit at the Ministry of Public Health and Population, said that whole grains, especially wheat, are rich in iron. The iron contained in grains is also more easily absorbed by the body than iron contained in other foods, such as meat.  It is also the least expensive way to include iron in the diet. Al-Mudhwahi added that imported grains are exposed to chemicals, which make them lose their vitamins and minerals. Um Ahmed is one of the many Sanaani shoppers who looks specifically for locally grown wheat.

When she was asked the reason for her preference, she said, “My daughter is giving birth and she needs extra nutrition especially during this period. And all the local grains are very nutritious, although they are more expensive than the imported grain.” Hamza Ghalab, 19, the owner of grain shop in the Old City has sold grains for seven years. Ghalab says that she sells all kinds of local grains and dried foodstuffs, such as wheat, barley, lentils, corn, durra and fenugreek, legumes, foul, peas, spicy garlic, all kinds of hot peppers, dried thyme and dried coriander.  “Although these kinds of grains are expensive, people are buying them more than before,” he said. “It is rare now to find people who buy and prefer the imported grains.”

An eighth qadah (one qadah equals 20 kilograms) of the local dried thyme, which is about four kilograms, costs YR 1,000, while the imported variety costs only YR 600. An eighth qadah of the local wheat costs YR 500 and the imported wheat costs a mere YR 350. Similarly, a kilogram of the local fenugreek costs YR 400 and the imported fenugreek costs YR 250. Yet people are resisting the lure of the cheaper consumer goods, preferring to buy the local grains and legumes, because they are very nutritious, especially for the sick people who need good and healthy food.  “I always like to buy the local lentils because it keeps me healthier and younger and I do not like the imported kind at all,” said an old woman.

“I use the lentil in preparing qafou’a (a kind of bread which is very thick) and cook it with vegetables like onion and tomato.” Millet is a very expensive grain because it is difficult and rare to find it. A fourth qadah costs YR 500 and can be found only in specific seasons. Adel Ghalab, a grain seller, said that the reason for the higher prices of the local grains is that they depend on the rainy seasons. In the rainy season, they are often cheaper than they are during drier times. But if the rains fail to come on time, crops may fail. And there are no vast lands set aside to grow these grains because they only depend on rain.

“Many of the poor people buy the imported grains because they are cheaper than the local,” he said.  “I wish that I could buy the local grains for my family every day, but sometimes I buy them only as my family’s budget allows,” said Zaid Mohammed, 35, an employee.  Abdullah al-Amir, 30, an employee, said that he prefers the local things. “They remind me of my childhood and village. When I eat the local things, I feel very happy,” he said. “The youth these days like the imported white flour that is used in preparing biscuits and cakes and they do not care for the nutritious local grains,” he said.

Hana Ali said that he uses the local grains in preparing modern foods and sweets such as cookies, cakes, and biscuits, in which their appearance and taste is wonderful. Mohammed al-Shami, 39, an employee in the Ministry of Finance, came to the grain souk to buy durra. “I buy durra, which is used in preparing lahouh (a kind of spongy bread that is served with milk, yoghurt, and certain spices) as one of the main dishes, because we have a wedding and we should serve people lahouh made with the local grains.”

Manal Ameen, 30, a housewife, said that she did not eat local grains when she was a child, because she lived in the city. “So I have weak body and bad health. I buy the local grains for my children because I do not want them to be like me. They do not like them now, but I force them to eat,” she said. 

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