Coconut Gentrification in the Northern Coast of Ecuador — Pilar Egüez Guevara, Ph.D. (AHS14)
Channel: AncestryFoundation
Date: 2014-08-24

Coconut Gentrification in the Northern Coast of Ecuador: Who is to Blame?

For centuries coconut has been a staple in the diet of the Afro-descendant population of Esmeraldas, a province in the north western region of Ecuador. Based on ethnographic and historical analyses, I examine the sharp decline in coconut consumption among Esmeraldeños during recent decades in the context of shifting values among urban middle classes towards the food traditions of historically marginalized communities. I discuss how local and global trade flows and conflicting ideas about coconut and health, exacerbate economic and epistemic gaps that draw Esmeraldeños away from their native foods while simultaneously bringing them to major cities re-branded as healthy.

Abstracts and information about the Ancestral Health Symposium can be found at www.ancestralhealth.org/ahs14-program.