The Ark of Taste in Kenya
II edition
The volume is a unique contribution to exploring Kenya's food heritage. It presents a selection of products rooted in the Kenyan people's tradition. It is an essential tool for anyone who wants to know more about Kenyan foods, cuisines, and gastronomies. The book is divided into three sections: The first section includes seven chapters that introduce readersto the history and current state of Kenyan food heritage, and to the research projects that have been conducted to rediscover this heritage. In the second section, the 100 products are presented and described. The third section illustrates the activities of Slow Food in Kenya. The volume is the result of collaboration among the researchers of the University of Gastronomic Sciences, Egerton University, the University of Embu, the University of Nairobi, and the Slow Food Kenya Network. The book is published under the auspices of the Embassy of Italy in Nairobi.
“Biodiversity is the greatest promise for the future of humankind.”
Without it, the foundation for human life on the planet is lost, as is the very soil on which civilizations and cultures have been shaped and formed as the result of human adaptation to the natural environment. Defending, protecting, and promoting biodiversity is therefore not simply one among a number of choices, advanced by the intellectuals of conservation or by nostalgic environmentalists: It is, rather, the only viable path forward. It is a moral duty that we, the generation that inhabits this historic moment, must take on for those who will come after us and live on this planet Earth, a planet that, today, we are trampling, hurting, and mistreating. From this point of view, the Ark of Taste, a global project that this book takes up in its African—and, in particular, Kenyan—context, is an initiative that seeks to create information, knowledge, and awareness about this unique heritage. Through the Ark, communities are invited to rediscover their agricultural and food heritage, in order not to lose the connection with the land that feeds us and will continue to feed us
Carlo Petrini
President of the University of Gastronomic Sciences and Founder of Slow Food
Foto: Bruno Cordioli 2010. https://flickr.com/photos/21394564@N04/4320020215