Articles
Wild greens traded in the open markets of Lebanon
Article number
1384_56
Pages
443 – 450
Language
English
Abstract
Wild greens in Lebanon offer a very promising source to potentially contribute to food security and economic resilience of rural communities.
This is especially important as a growing number of households are currently classified as food insecure due to the current economic crisis, surge in population size, and COVID-19 lockdowns exacerbated by the impact of climate change.
In this study, we aimed to identify traded wild edible greens (WEGs) in Lebanon.
Field visits to open local and main city markets and mountain road stands were conducted during 2018-2021. This was accompanied with interviews with 53 vendors using a semi-structured questionnaire.
A total of 43 WEGs of 12 botanical families with Asteraceae constituting the main representatives (n=15 species) were identified as commonly traded in the form of either sole or mixed species. Allium sp., Anchusa sp., Centaurea sp., Cichorium intybus, Eryngium sp., Foeniculum vulgare, Gundelia tournefortii, Malva sp., Nasturtium officinale, Scolymus hispanicus, Scorzonera sp., Taraxacum officinale, and Tragopogon sp. were the top identified taxa.
While most identified species were sold as sole, one particular mix of various species of Asteraceae was only found.
Wild greens are often collected by women for both household use or trading.
They are consumed raw in salads, sides, or cooked alone.
While this driver has led to the successful small-scale cultivation of some species such as C. intybus, F. vulgare, M. sylvestris, and P. oleracea, WEGs collected from the wild are still preferred by consumers.
This has resulted in unsustainable harvesting threatening the sustainability of some of these species.
Future actions are needed to incorporate priority species in conservation initiatives and the agricultural systems of the country and the region.
This is especially important as a growing number of households are currently classified as food insecure due to the current economic crisis, surge in population size, and COVID-19 lockdowns exacerbated by the impact of climate change.
In this study, we aimed to identify traded wild edible greens (WEGs) in Lebanon.
Field visits to open local and main city markets and mountain road stands were conducted during 2018-2021. This was accompanied with interviews with 53 vendors using a semi-structured questionnaire.
A total of 43 WEGs of 12 botanical families with Asteraceae constituting the main representatives (n=15 species) were identified as commonly traded in the form of either sole or mixed species. Allium sp., Anchusa sp., Centaurea sp., Cichorium intybus, Eryngium sp., Foeniculum vulgare, Gundelia tournefortii, Malva sp., Nasturtium officinale, Scolymus hispanicus, Scorzonera sp., Taraxacum officinale, and Tragopogon sp. were the top identified taxa.
While most identified species were sold as sole, one particular mix of various species of Asteraceae was only found.
Wild greens are often collected by women for both household use or trading.
They are consumed raw in salads, sides, or cooked alone.
While this driver has led to the successful small-scale cultivation of some species such as C. intybus, F. vulgare, M. sylvestris, and P. oleracea, WEGs collected from the wild are still preferred by consumers.
This has resulted in unsustainable harvesting threatening the sustainability of some of these species.
Future actions are needed to incorporate priority species in conservation initiatives and the agricultural systems of the country and the region.
Authors
H. Nasser, S. Baydoun, N. Hani, N. Arnold, L. Chalak
Keywords
wild edible greens, traditional food, Asteraceae, threats
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