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Yearly household record of food from the forest for home consumption by rural villagers in north-east Thailand

Kiatirat Kunarattanapruk, Juruwan Chokkanapitak, Pissanu Uttamavatin, Benja Muktabhant, Suwalee Lowirakorn, and Sastri Saowakontha

The authors are affiliated with Khon Kaen University in Khon Kaen, Thailand. Kiatirat Kunarattanapruk, Pissanu Uttamavatin, Benja Muktabhant, and Suwalee Lowirakorn are in the Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Public Health; Juruwan Chokkanapitak is in the Department of Biostatistics and Demography, Faculty of Public Health; and Sastri Saowakontha is in the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine.

Forests provide food and resources that are used in the daily life of the rural villagers who live nearby. This study explored the contribution of forest food to household nutrition and food security of these people. The study focused on the frequency, varieties, and amounts of forest food gathered for consumption in the household, and the reduction in food expenditure resulting from using forest food. Seven households in a village near a forest in north-east Thailand were selected for a one-year study of forest food consumption using household food records. The data were collected from May 1988 to April 1989. Forest food was gathered for consumption an average of three days a week. One hundred twenty-six kinds of forest food were gathered. The amount gathered for consumption was highest in May and lowest in December, with an average of 126.6 kg per household per year. The use of forest food could reduce food expenditure for the rural villagers.

Introduction

In the past, forests were very important to rural villagers. They were sources of foods and resources that were used daily. They provided animal foods, vegetables, fruits, medicines, household building materials, household equipment, wood for fuel, and products for cash sale [1, 2]. Food from the forest was particularly important for the villagers, some of whom went to the forest frequently to collect food [1].

Food from the forest supplied nutrients. Wild animals provided protein and were good sources of iron, vitamin A, and vitamin B. Wild leaves and fruits contained vitamins and minerals. Seeds, nuts, roots, and tubers supplied fats, carbohydrates, and minerals. Mushrooms provided protein and minerals [2 - 4]. Forest food provided supplemental, seasonal, and emergency contributions to household food supplies [2].

In earlier times, villagers who lived near the forests of north-east Thailand were engaged in a self-subsistent economy, with a stable crop of paddy rice, supplemented by hunting wildlife and gathering food and wood from the forests surrounding the settlements. Any surplus from household production and collection was shared among villagers or bartered with outsiders [1, 2]. In the past 40 years, the growing population has resulted in an increased demand for food, including forest foods, as well as more land for cultivation. Some households that did not have enough land for cultivation moved to the forest for cash crop cultivation. This was one of the events that contributed to the decrease in forest area [5, 6]. From 1961 to 1985, the forest area in Thailand decreased from 53% to 29% of the total area of the country [7]. Because of the rapid decrease in forest area, in 1987 the That Government enacted a forest-closing law that prohibited cultivation in the forest but still allowed the villagers to collect forest food.

This study was conducted in a village located near a forest in north-east Thailand. It began a few months after the prohibition of cultivation in the forest. The objective was to study the use of food from the forest for home consumption by the rural villagers during one year by focusing on the kinds of foods gathered from the forest for consumption in the household, the frequency with which they were gathered, the amounts gathered, and the reduction in food expenditures resulting from using forest food.

Methods

Village selection and characteristics

The criteria for village selection were that it be near a forest and be classified as a poor, remote, rural village with insufficient rice production and crop land.

The selected village was small, with only 59 households in 1987. Most of the population was Thai-Laos and Buddhist. Most families were nuclear families with approximately five or six persons in a household. The village was situated in a valley in Khon Kaen Province in north-east Thailand. It was located near a forest area and was approximately 14 km from the district centre. The village was isolated from others in the valley. Clusters of households were located on the high land surrounded by rice fields (most of which belonged to other villages) and mountains. It was difficult to travel to or from the village, because no minibus passed through the village, and the gravel road was muddy during the rainy season. Normally, the villagers took a minibus from a neighbouring village about 2 km away, and there were two or three minibus trips to the district centre each day. At the beginning of the study, there was no electricity in the village.

Compared with other villages in the valley, the studied village was poor, with low income and the least agricultural land per household. Rice was cultivated only for home consumption, and even this amount was insufficient for the people’s needs because their rice fields were too small. The main source of cash income was cassava. Before the forest was closed, most of the villagers encroached on the forest reserve to grow cassava. In 1987 the Government banned cultivation in the forest, although villagers could still collect food from the forest.

Household selection and characteristics

Land tenure was taken as a measure of economic status. Thus, a landless household was classified as poor. At the beginning of the study, there were 59 households in the village, 15 of which were landless. According to the village headman, no household had sufficient land or other property to be classified as rich. Households with some of their own land or their parents’ land were considered households of moderate economic status. The village headman was asked which households belonged to these categories. Then, members of households from different categories were asked if they would like to cooperate in the study and keep household food records. Seven households (two landless and five of moderate economic status) were selected for the study. The characteristics of the studied households are summarized in table 1.

Data collection and analysis

The seven households were given forms for recording daily household food consumption (including menus and ingredients) and weighing scales. One member of the household was trained in food-weighing techniques and asked to keep daily food consumption records for every meal in the house. The varieties, amount, prices, and sources of foods were recorded from May 1988 to April 1989. Only data on food from the forest were analysed. The data were edited, coded, and entered into a computer to make a food database using the FoxBase programme. The varieties, amounts, prices, and sources of foods and the number of days when the data were recorded were counted for each month. Since there were some days when the data were not recorded, consumption for that month was calculated proportionally to the amount of food consumed on the recorded days.

TABLE 1. Characteristics of the studied households

Household no.	No. of members	Dependency ratio	Economic status	Land in use	Remarks
1	6	0.67	Poor	Landless	Often unemployed
2	5	0.20	Moderate	Sharecropping
3	5	0.60	Moderate	3 rais paddy field 3 rais upland not used
4	6	0.33	Moderate	6 rais paddy field 24 rais upland not used
5	9	0.12	Moderate	4 rais paddy field
6	6	0.67	Poor	Landless	Employed transplanting, planting, and harvesting in rice fields and gathering forest food for sale
7	4	0.25	Moderate	6 rais paddy field 4 rais not used

Definition of forest food

Forest food consisted of all the kinds of food that could be found in the deep forest (dong in Thai), on the hillsides or hilltops (khok), or in the shrublands (lon). Some kinds of forest food came from trees, and others were found in or near ponds or streams in the deep forest.

Results

Frequency of gathering of forest food for consumption

On average, households living near the forest gathered forest food for home consumption three days a week. The poor, landless households whose members were frequently unemployed gathered forest food an average of five days a week, as compared with households of moderate economic status, which gathered food two or three days a week. The poor, landless households whose members were employed gathered forest food as frequently as those of moderate economic status. The average frequency of gathering forest food for home consumption was highest in May and lowest in December (table 2).

Varieties of forest food gathered for consumption

A total of 126 kinds of forest food were gathered. There were 49 kinds of animals (39%), 16 kinds of mushrooms (13%), 6 kinds of bamboo shoots (5%), 43 kinds of other vegetables (34%), and 12 kinds of fruits (9%) (fig. 1). Table 3 lists some of these forest foods.

TABLE 2. Average number of days per week spent gathering forest food for consumption, according to month and household

Month	Household no.							Mean
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Jan	NDa	3.5	1.6	0.7	1.8	1.0	2.3	1.8
Feb	4.4	3.0	1.6	0.0	2.0	0.0	4.5	2.2
Mar	4.9	4.7	3.2	0.5	2.0	2.9	4.4	3.2
Apr	ND	4.7	4.7	1.0	6.3	2.9	ND	3.9
May	5.1	5.4	6.5	2.5	5.6	5.4	2.9	4.8
Jun	5.4	2.7	5.0	2.8	2.1	2.3	2.5	3.3
Jul	6.5	3.5	2.0	2.8	1.5	2.5	1.9	3.0
Aug	6.1	3.8	2.7	4.1	3.2	2.7	0.2	3.3
Sep	5.4	3.7	0.6	2.1	2.6	4.0	1.4	2.8
Oct	4.7	2.6	3.0	2.1	2.9	4.3	1.3	3.0
Nov	6.1	5.6	3.8	4.0	2.1	3.5	0.7	3.7
Dec	ND	2.3	1.6	0.5	0.2	0.5	1.3	1.1
Mean	5.4	3.8	3.0	1.9	2.7	2.7	2.1	3.3

a. No data

The average amount of forest food gathered for consumption was 127 kg per household per year. The three peak months for the total amount of food gathered were May, August, and November. The consumption of animal food was highest in May, bamboo shoots in August, mushrooms in November, and other vegetables in May (table 4).

Reduction of food expenditure from gathered forest food

The average reduction of food expenditure from consuming forest food was 2,946 baht (26 baht = US$1.00 in 1985-1992) per household per year. The highest reduction of food expenditure was in May, about 595 baht per household, and the lowest was in January, about 141 baht per household (fig. 2).

Discussion

This study was conducted in one year after the forest was closed and the villagers were not allowed to plant cassava in the forest. Their incomes were reduced by one-half, from about 20,000 to 10,000 baht per year. During that period, they had to save their money and borrow from people outside the village. Some households occasionally gathered wild vegetables, bamboo shoots, or mushrooms to sell to people living near the village. At that time some households sold fruit, such as bananas, from their own gardens at the market. In this way, they could get about 40 to 50 baht per day. The villagers were more dependent on forest foods, especially the poor families who were often unemployed and who gathered forest food five days per week, as compared with the families of moderate income, who gathered forest food two or three days per week.

FIG. 1. Percentage of kinds of forest food gathered for consumption by the studied households in a year

TABLE 3. Local, common, and scientific names of some food plants and animals from the forest

Local name	Common name	Scientific name
Mangda	Giant water bug	Lethocerus indicus
Khai Ja-kajan	Cicada egg	Magicicada spp.
Mim	Little honey bee	Apis florea
Khai Mod-dang	Ant eggs	-
Kung	Freshwater prawn	Macrobrachium lanchesteri
-	Shrimp	-
Hoi-Joob	Pond snail	Sintaia ingallsiana
Pla Ta-pean	Small carp	Puntius gonionotus
Pla Ngarm	Small carp	-
Pla Khow	Jullien’s mud carp	Cirrhina jullieni
Pla E-Thai	Small carp	Osteochilus spp.
Pla Chon	Snakehead fish	Ophicephalus striatus
-	Rasbora	Rasbora spp.
Pla Duk	Freshwater catfish	Clarias spp.
Pla Nin	Nile tilapia	Tilapia nilotica
Pla Lai	Swamp eel	Fluta alba
Kob	Frog	Rana spp.
Ngod	Frog	Rana spp.
Kaet	Small toad	Oocidozyga lima
Ung	Bullfrog	Kaloulan spp.
Dtow	Tortoise	-
Yar	Ground lizard	Liolepis belliana
Lan	Tree monitor	Varanus nebulosus
Kee-kra-porm	Tree lizard	Calotes spp.
Nok-kao	Dove	Macropygia ruficeps
Kai-pah	Jungle fowl	Gallus gallus
Kra-jaun	Chipmunk	Menetes berdmorei
Kra-rauk	Squirrel	Callosciurus spp.
Kra-tae	Tree shew	Tupaia spp.
Bang	Flying lemur	Cynocephalus variegatus
Noo-na	Field rat	Rattus rattus
Noo-wai	Field rat	Leopoldamys sabanus
Moo-pah	Boar	Sus scrofa
E-hen	Palm civet	-
Lin	Pangolin	Manis spp.
Ma-muang	Mango	Mangifera indica Linn.
Mak-mee	Ripe jackfruit	Artocarpus heterophyllus Lamk.
Mak-waa	Java plum	Syzygium cumini Druce
Ma-kang	Ma Kue Phuang	Solanum torvum Sw.
Mak-ben	Small thorn tree	Flacourtia indica Merr.
Mak-keng	Kleng	Dialium cochinchinense Pierre
Het Kradang	Het Khan	Lentinus praerigidus Berk.
Het Ghaw	-	Lentinus edodes
Het Takai	-	Russula delica Fr.
Het Teenhad		Russula nigricanus Fr.
Het Plorg		Termitomyces fuliginosus Heim
Het Pung	-	Boletus edulis Bull.
Het Pungkam	-	-
Het Ra-ngok		Amanita vaginata Fr. Var. alb (Fr.) Gill
Het Larp	-	-
Het Hoo-noo		Aurecularia auriculasis (S. F. Gray) Martin
Het Po	-	Astreaus hygrometricus (Pers.) Morg.
Het Ploag-dong		Termitomyces fuliginosus Heim.
Pak Kra-jeaw	-	Curcuma sp.
Pak Kra-don	-	Careya arborea Roxb.
Pak Karn-trong	-	Ottelia alismoides Pers.
Pak Kaaw	Paracress	Spilanthes acmella Murr.
Pak Ngoo-haa	Ivy gourd	-
Pak Tiu	-	Cratoxylum formosum Dyer
Pak Lin-laen	-	Naravelia Zeylanica DC.
Neem	Pag Sadao	Azadirachta indica Juss.
Pak Sarb	-	Adenia viridiflora Craib.
Pak Nam	Thorny vegetable	Lasia spinosa Thw.
Pak Waan		Melientha suavis Pierre
Pak E-lert	-	Piper sarmentosum Roxb.
Pak Mek	-	Sysygium gratum (Wight) S. N. Mitra
Wai		Rattan leaf top Calamus sp.
Naw Jod	-	Arundinaria ciliata A. Camus
Bong	-	Bambusa tulda Roxb
Sweet	-	Bambusa sp.
Hurk	-	Bambusa sp.
Phai	-	Bambusa sp.
	Banana stalk	Musa acuminata Colla
Toa	Freshwater algae	Spirogyra spp.
E-log-e-ngorm	-	Thomsonia sumawongii Bogn.
Pak Lin-fah	-	Oroxylum indicum Vent.
Mafai	-	Baccaurea ramiflora Lour.

FIG. 2. Reduction in household food expenditure as a result of gathering forest food for consumption, according to month. 26 baht = US$1.00 in 1985-1992

Thailand has three seasons: summer, rainy, and winter. The rainfall starts in May and continues to September. It rains again during the first fortnight of November. In May wild vegetables and wild animals, such as toads, can be found easily. During the rainy season local people can gather bamboo shoots and mushrooms for home consumption. At the beginning of November mushrooms (Het Kradang) can be found easily and gathered for sale and home consumption.

The kinds of foods gathered from the forest for consumption in the household, the frequency with which they were gathered, and the amounts gathered depended not only on seasonal variation but also on the amount of time that was available to the villagers. From May to June, the rainy season, there was a lot of forest food. The villagers had free time to gather forest food because this period, following the seeding of the paddy fields, was one of waiting before transplanting the young rice plants. The forest food gathered during this period included ground lizards, tree lizards, bamboo shoots, E-log-e-ngorms (vegetable), morning glories, Pak Nam (vegetable), and Het Po (mushroom).

TABLE 4. Average amount of forest food (kilograms fresh weight) gathered for consumption per month by all households, according to month and type of food

Type of food		Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total
Animal food		3.9	4.9	5.2	4.0	11.6	3.4	1.2	0.7	0.8	1.4	2.1	3.0	42.2
Vegetables
	Mushrooms	0.1	0.0	0.5	1.6	3.4	3.1	3.0	1.4	2.0	4.3	9.5	0.4	29.3
	Bamboo shoots	0.1	0.0	1.2	1.1	5.4	5.0	5.7	9.6	5.9	2.5	1.4	1.7	39.6
	Other	0.2	1.0	1.4	1.5	2.1	0.9	0.7	0.3	0.4	0.6	0.7	0.0	3.8
Fruits		0.7	1.2	0.0	0.1	0.4	0.1	0.0	1.5	0.0	0.8	0.9	0.0	5.7
Total		5.0	7.1	8.3	8.3	22.9	12.5	10.6	13.5	9.1	9.6	14.6	5.1	126.6

From July to September, a lot of forest foods, such as bamboo shoots, mushrooms, Het Takai, Het Ra-ngok, fish, snakehead fish, and swamp eel, were available. However, since this was the time to transplant the young rice plants, some family members would gather or catch forest food, while others continued with their farm work.

During October and November, forest foods such as bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and Het Kradang were available. In this period the farmers were busy harvesting rice, so only some members of the family gathered forest food for home consumption or for sale.

December to February was the cold and dry season. The farmers who did not migrate to work outside the village had free time to go to the forest, but less forest food was available during this period. They could find some animals, such as Ngod (frogs), fresh-water prawns, ant eggs, minnows, and some kinds of fish.

March and April were dry and most of the natural ponds had no water. At this time it was difficult to find forest food. Although the farmers had free time, very few people went to the forest during this period because of the hot weather and the difficulty of finding forest food. They might find some kinds of mushrooms, bamboo shoots, toads, and frogs, but the amounts were less than during the rainy season. Other forest foods found in this period were ant eggs and Pak Waan (vegetable).

Since the villagers earned an average of only 45 baht per day, the use of forest food could substantially reduce food costs. Consumption of forest food by the villagers is traditional. If they cannot gather forest food themselves, they have to buy it in the market, where the prices are very high. Some villagers, especially the poor families, may not be able to buy forest food for home consumption.

Forest food was important for rural villagers living near a forest. The study conducted in this village from January to September 1988 found that except for rice, the staple food, the forest was the main source of household food. In terms of kilograms, 31% of all household food came from the forest, 22% was produced by the household, 31% came from the paddy fields, 13% was purchased, and 3% came from gifts [1].

During the study period, the villagers were allowed to collect forest food. In the future the forest will be closed completely, and collecting many kinds of forest food will not be allowed, especially hunting wild animals. The villagers may be faced with food and economic problems that the Government should help alleviate. The assistance that should be given in the villages is as follows:

» Raising animals such as fish for protein should be promoted.

» The village committees and women’s groups should be trained to run food-production programmes at the village level, since many poor households are landless.

» Disease prevention and treatment of animals, such as chickens, ducks, and fish, should be initiated in the villages, as should the cultivation of fruits and vegetables.

» Food produced at the village level should be provided to village households first and the surplus should be sold, with the money going into the village fund.

» The villagers should be allowed to gather forest foods, such as mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and vegetables, for home consumption and sale. Naturally, these forest foods will have new plants every year. It would be a pity for the forest food to die without being used as a food source. It would be better if the villagers were allowed to continue to collect those forest foods for home consumption in order to reduce their food expenditure and allow them to spend their money for other necessities. At the same time, campaigns for preserving the forest should be conducted on a continual basis.

» Villagers should be encouraged to preserve the forest for their own benefit as well as that of the country as a whole. Schoolchildren, especially those living near the forest area, should be educated and stimulated to take care of the forest for the benefit of the country and rural villagers in the future.

» Villagers living near the forest and far from the sea seldom consume seafood. This leads to goitre. Thus, information about food intake and health should be provided to the villagers.

» Income-generating projects that are suitable and acceptable should be promoted in the villages or the local areas.

We are grateful to the Food and Agricultural Organization for financial support in the compilation and analysis of data. Special thanks go to Dr. Pranom Chantaranothai and Mr. Preeyawut Watcharanon for scientific identification of plant and animal foods. We are also thankful for the helpfulness and kindness of the villagers, especially the members of the seven households who donated time and effort to record data for the authors during the year.

References

1. Brinkman W, ed. Why natural forests are linked with nutrition, health and self reliance of villagers in Northeast Thailand: a collection of papers. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization, 1989.

2. Food and Agriculture Organization. Forestry and nutrition: a reference manual. Rome: FAO, 1989.

3. Food and Agriculture Organization. Forestry and food security. Rome: FAO, 1989.

4. Nutrition Division, Department of Health, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand. Nutritive values of Thai foods. Bangkok: War Veterans Association of Thailand Publishing Co., 1992.

5. North-East Thailand Upland Social Forestry Project. Summary report: human-forest interactions in North-East Thailand. Bangkok: Kasetsart University, 1987.

6. Leungaramsri P, Rajesh N, eds. The future of people and forests in Thailand after the logging ban. Bangkok: Paap Pim Printing, 1992.

7. Chuntanaparb L, Wood HI. Management of degraded forest land in Thailand. Bangkok: Kasetsart University, 1986.