Une petite bougie d’ambiance douce et suave. Un plaisir pour le nez, un instant gourmand et sans conséquence.

10 ml hv de baobab ou macérât vanille
25 ml hv de coco
7.5 g d’acide stéarique
4 g de cire d’abeille
1 bonne pointe d’ocre jaune
15 gouttes he de citron
10 gouttes d’extrait de vanille
6 gouttes d’extrait de miel
5 gouttes de vitamine E
1 mèche en coton

Faites fondre les hv, l’acide stéarique et la cire d’abeille. Lorsque tout est bien fondu, laissez refroidir quelques instant, ajoutez l’ocre, l’he, l’extrait et la vitamine E. Versez le mélange dans un joli verre et ajoutez délicatement la mèche au centre.  Respirez ce parfum suave et gourmand !

A body butter sustains a community of 40 families.
Nu Skin Enterprises is a cosmetic brand known for its quality skin care as well as its outreach to others less fortunate across the globe. In 1996, the company created the Force for Good Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to improving quality of life in indigenous communities. Nu Skin is involved in hundreds of humanitarian projects in more than 50 countries, including one in Malawi, Africa. “Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world,” says Sandie Tillotson, senior vice president and cofounder of Nu Skin Enterprises, “but also one of the most peaceful, so we knew they would be receptive to our help.” They decided to tackle the biggest problem: poor farming techniques. Enter the Build a Village initiative. Nu Skin built a “model” village that functions as an agricultural school, teaching farmers and their spouses modern farming techniques, even building a reservoir so the farmers could learn irrigation techniques. The village is currently home to 40 families, with the goal of housing 100. The families will stay for two years, learn to farm for themselves, and then relocate so new families can move in. “It’s the concept of teaching a person to fish, rather than just giving them the fish,” says Tillotson. For every Nu Skin Epoch product purchased, 25 cents is donated to the Force for Good Foundation. With each purchase of Epoch Baobab Body Butter, $30, Nu Skin will use that 25 cents to plant a baobab or fruit tree in Malawi, which will help further preserve the environment. Featured in Redbook November 2008

Triste e melanconica favola di innocenza smaliziata, di genuina e pura curiosità.
Piansi dieci anni fa, piango tuttora. Ma rileggerlo fa risorgere il Piccolo Principe che sono stata. 
Vivamente consigliato.

Autore:Silvia Bortoletto per |2|lines

Compra il libro!

Another in the series which simply links to the websites of Food Processing Companies in Africa. It is hoped that the industry can benefit from a knowledge of who’s doing what - either through the establishment of new businesses or through trading.

Dakar based Zena Exotic Fruits produces an attractive range of jams, spreads, syrups and sauces using a range of fruit including hibiscus, cashew apple, tamarind and baobab.

The products are based on West & North African recipes using local natural resources combined with conventional tropical fruit, peanuts & sesame. Their quality relies on

• harmonious balance of fruits and sugars

• controlled processing at every step
• preserved naturally
• prepared according to strict quality norms (HACCP)

Contacts

Address: Zena Exotic Fruits SARL
Km 1.8, Rte de Rufisque
Dakar, Senegal

Tel/Dakar: +221.33.821.6996
Fax/Dakar: +221.33.822.5663
Email: zena_exoticfruits@yahoo.fr
Cel/US: +001.917.515.5621

Featured Previously on The DIGIVU Blog

Ouendmor Ltd Moriba - African Food Processor
Coast Coconut Farms - African Food Processor
Ouendmor Ltd Moriba - African Food Processor
African Food Online
Mongozo BV - African Food Processor
Homefoods Processing & Cannery Ltd - African Food Processor
Suneor SA - African Food Processor

Obesos

Que voy a Sentir…?

…Bonito.

Baobab Silhouette (Used with permission.)

They carried me to a particular spot where I saw a herd of antelopes; but I laid aside all thoughts of sports, as soon as I I perceived a tree of prodigious thickness, which drew my attention. This was a calabash tree (baobab), which the Jaloffes call quol in their language. There was nothing extraordinary in its height; for it was only about fifty feet; but its trunk was of prodigious thickness. I extended my arms, as wide as possible I could, thirteen times, before I embraced its circumference; and for greater exactness, I measured it round afterwards with a pack thread, and found it to be sixty-five feet: and consequently the diameter was nearly twenty-two. I do not believe that the like was even seen in any other part of the world; and I am persuaded that if our ancient voyagers had been acquainted with this tree, they would have added some surprising circumstances to its description.

~~Michel Adanson, Histoire Naturelle du Sénégal (1757)

The legendary missionary/explorer David Livingstone drew the freakish baobab tree as a giant carrot planted upside down. But unlike others of his day, he did not believe the trees could live 5000 years -  more like 1000 - and science has proved him right over the years. Like just about everything else associated with Africa, legends abound in native cultures about the baobab — also called the “monkey bread” or “cream of tartar” — tree and how it came to be.

One version goes thus: at the time of Creation, the baobab complained to the Creator of the Universe that it wanted to be tall like the palm, beautiful with flowers like the flame tree, and on and on. The Creator grew so tired of the whining that the only thing to do was to turn the tree upside down to silence it. Myth has it that the tree never uttered a complaint afterward.

Baobab Seed Pod (Used with permission.)

Thus the legendary baobab is really the ultimate survivor, living as it does in some of the harshest environments on Earth.

According to another widespread folk belief, people get fat if they drink or eat products made from the baobab. The tree’s waistline measures anywhere from 25 to 30 feet and its height surpasses 40 feet in some cases. And many women believe that the trees act as a fertility agent, sacrificing goats and roosters at the base of certain, sacred trees in hopes of bearing children, healthy or otherwise.

The baobab plays a prominent role in the tale, Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince), by the explorer and pilot, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, which nearly every student of the French language reads at one point or another.

The Planet of Le Petit Prince

Now there were some terrible seeds on the planet that was the home of the little prince; and these were the seeds of the baobab. The soil of that planet was infested with them. A baobab is something you will never, never be able to get rid of if you attend to it too late. It spreads over the entire planet. It bores clear through it with its roots. And if the planet is too small, and the baobabs are too many, they split it in pieces … ~~Chapter 5, The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Now I am not sure exactly why the Little Prince hated baobabs so much, but it probably had to do with a fear that the roots of the baobab would rip apart the Little Prince’s planet.

In spite of its size and other shortcomings, the majestic baobab provides much that is good for the people of Africa and other tropical areas of the world. People cook with baobab leaves, fruit, seeds, young sheets, and roots. Other parts of the tree yield useful items, like material for rope and medicinal products. And the hard sweet-potato-shaped fruit husks make dandy testicle covers, too.

Baobab, or Monkey Bread, Seed Pod (Photo credit: C. Bertelsen)

But like a creature from a horror movie, killing one takes some doing. Ellen Drake says, “Baobab trees are difficult to kill. They are almost impossible to chop down. The wood is so spongy that an axe either bounces off, or gets stuck in the soft water-laden trunk. The tree is too thick to saw through easily. Ring-barking, fatal to most trees, does not usually kill a baobab. … It is resistant to fire.” But elephants can and do destroy the water-logged baobabs.

Ancient Egyptians knew about the baobab and so did al-Barki, who is credited with the first written mention of the baobab in world literature in 1068. Ibn Battuta, the Moroccan explorer, wrote about the baobab in 1352 in regard to a weaver who set up his shop in the hollow trunk of a thriving baobab tree. The name “baobab” stems from the Arabic word bu hibab (”the fruit with many seeds”). Azupara described baobabs of “108 hands circumference” in 1477. A little later, Prospero Alpino, a Venetian herbalist wrote in 1592 about the bu hubob fruit he’d seen in Cairo markets. But it fell to Michel Adanson, a Frenchman, to be the first person to describe these behemoths in detail in 1757. Adanson’s work led Carl Linneaus to name the tree after Adanson, Adansonia digitata.

Baobab Flower (Used with permission of Dinesh Valke.)

The baobab is rich in calcium, and women and children in Senegal eat it for that reason. Hausi and Fulani farming communities concoct a drink from the fruit. Cooks use the leaves, particularly the young ones, like spinach, dried and powdered, in soups or sauces as a thickener, much like okra or file powder in the American South. The Wolofs of Senegal harvest young leaves in February or March and dry them to make a thickening powder for sauces eaten with couscous. The white powder from the seeds can be used as cream of tartar in baking. The acidic pulp acts like rennet and curdles milk. And some groups burn the pulp of the baobab’s fruit to smoke the ubiquitous smoked fish of West Africa, what I call “West African” bacon. Cooks use smoked fish in the same way that Southern cooks in the U.S. use smoked pork to season greens, stews, and sauces.

Opened Baobab Seed Pod (Used with permission.)

Baobab seeds are hard to get into, but once the covers split off, the seeds substitute for coffee, as well as providing a special oil only used on festive occasions in Senegal.

In other words, the people of traditional Africa see the baobab as a “tree of life.”

RECIPES

Mowana Madila (Botswana)

Cooks ferment and drain milk to make madila (sour milk), which is a favorite addition to porridge. Madila can also be eaten on its own.”

2 ¼ cups baobab fruit pulp (including seeds)

3 cups fresh milk

Sugar or honey (optional)

Soak pulp in milk about 30 minutes. Mash pulp with your fingers to clean the pulp off the seeds. Remove the seeds. This makes a sour milk much like yogurt, with the thickness of heavy cream. Add to porridge or drink on its own. Adding sugar or honey makes the drink a little sweeter.

Mabuyu (Kenya)

1 medium baobab fruit

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup sugar

1 T. red food coloring

1 T. raspberry flavoring or extract

Cayenne pepper to taste (about 1 teaspoon)

Pinch of salt

Crack open the pods and remove the pulp. Mash pulp in a bowl to separate the seeds from one another and remove loose powder. Try to remove as much fiber as possible. Set aside.

Boil the water, sugar, red food coloring, and raspberry flavoring until the mixture thickens like a syrup; approximately 15 minutes. Reduce heat and add baobab seeds to the syrup. Stir constantly to keep from scorching. When the seeds become hard, like candy, and the syrup is absorbed, remove from heat and pour into a clean, non-glass dish. Cool until hard. Eat Mabuyu like candy. Watch out for the seeds if your teeth tend to break or crack while biting on hard objects!

Naboulou (Meat & baobab leaves in peanut sauce)

This variation of Mafé is well-known and eaten daily all over West Africa, especially in Senegal, The Gambia, Mali and the Ivory Coast. Meat simmers in a sauce thickened with ground peanuts and leaves, in this case baobab. This stew’s sweet-salty flavor epitomes the taste of West African food.

6-8 servings

2 T. oil

2 ibs. beef chuck roast, cut into 1 ½-inch cubes

1 medium onion, finely chopped

6 cloves garlic, mashed and minced

1 T. fresh ginger, minced

2-4 T. tomato paste

2 cups peeled, seeded and chopped plum tomatoes

1 -  cups water or beef stock

1 cup natural, unsalted peanut butter

Salt and pepper  to taste

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the meat and sauté until lightly browned on all sides, 5 - 6 minutes. Remove to a bowl and set aside.

Add the onion to the oil in the pot and sauté until translucent, 3 - 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger; sauté another 1 - 2 minutes. Do not allow the garlic to burn.

Return meat to the pot, stir in the tomato paste, and fry for about 1 minute. Stir in the chopped tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 8-10 minutes to soften the tomatoes.

Add enough water or stock to give the dish to a stew-like consistency. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

Stir in the peanut butter, salt and pepper. Simmer for another 40 minutes or until the meat is tender and oil rises to the surface of the dish. Add water as necessary to keep the dish stew-like.

Taste for seasoning and serve with rice or couscous.

Variations:

Use goat or cut-up chicken instead of beef. Or use chicken pieces.

When you add the water or stock, stir in some vegetables such as cabbage, yams, squash, okra, eggplant, potatoes, peppers or carrots. Make a vegetarian versions with only vegetables.

Kuka Soup (Northern Nigeria)

Serves 4

½ lb. kuka (baobab) leaves

½ lb. dried ground orko(okra)

1 fresh chile pepper

4 fresh tomatoes

1 large onion, peeled, and coarsely chopped

1 lb. dried, smoked, or fresh fish

6 tablespoons palm oil

4 cups stock or water

Salt to taste

Chop the tomatoes, onions, and chiles in a blender or food processor. Cook the blended ingredients in the oil for15 minutes. Add the okro and kuka leaves, stir and cook for 10 minutes. Wash and clean the fish; if using fresh fish, season with salt and pepper. Add to the pot. Pour the stock into a large pot. Cook until fish and other ingredients are done.

Season to taste and serve hot tuwo shinkafa (Hausa meal made from mashed boiled rice and served with soup)

Read More about Baobabs:

A Book of Baobabs, by Ellen Drake

Histoire Naturelle du Sénégal (1757), Michel Adanson

“The medico-social and cultural significance of Adansonia digitata (baobab) in African communites,” African Notes: Bulletin of the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan (Vol. 6, no. 1, p. 24-36), by John Owen

The Remarkable Baobab, by Thomas Pakenham

West African Food in the Middle Ages: According to Arabic Sources, by Tadeusz Lewicki, p. 67-68

Possible Source of Baobab Powder: Baobab Fruit Company Senegal http://www.baobabfruitco.com/ (no personal knowledge of this company and therefore no responsibility other than to state that it exists)

“A visitor who indicated intention to visit, does not get to eat a freshly killed chicken.” ~~African proverb

© 2008 C. Bertelsen

Nous sommes parties de Darwin a 8h15, pour 12h de route jusqu’a Kununurra. Il y avait le cowboy Malborro et sa barbie dans le bus, tres drole!! Nous avons beaucoup dormi entre 2 films de m***e! Peu avant d’arriver a destination, nous avons change d’etat et sommes passees dans le Western Australia (Avant on etait dans le Northern Territory). On a donc du passer le controle de quarantaine: on ne peut pas emporter de fruits et legumes frais, de miel, etc … d’un etat a un autre, pour ne pas causer de degats dans les differents ecosystemes.

Nous sommes arrivees a Kununurra, il faisait deja nuit. Et oui, le decallage horaire aidant, le soleil se couche encore plus tot ici!
Une personne de l’auberge de jeunesse est venue nous chercher a l’arret de bus, et on a eu la bonne surprise d’apprendre qu’on dormirait dans une chambre double au lieu d’un dortoir grace a une annulation.On a rencontre beaucoup de jeunes qui travaillent dans les fermes avoisinnantes. Ils sont vraiment courageux vu la chaleur qu’il fait ici!!

Apres 11h de sommeil, nous sommes allees visiter Kununurra. Il n’y a pas grand chose a faire a part les galeries d’art et le Lily Creek Lagoon (petite zone maraicageuse aux bords de la ville). On a vu plein de baobabs! Ainsi que plein d’aigles (oiseau commun dans l’Outback!).

Dans un journal australien, il y avait un article qui concernait la France (un seul) et le debut du texte etait “France has a new game. It’s called ‘Cherchez le pere’” ! Vous avez certainement devine qu’on parlait de Rachida Dati! Qui est le pere?!! Quelle belle image de la France!

Cet apres midi, on va profiter de la piscine avant de reprendre le bus a 18h. Demain matin, on devrait etre a Broome un peu avant 8h.

That was supposed to be the title of this blog. But I decided that I couldn’t bear to look at the word “Cheesecake” every time I went here to write something, so I decided on the more obnoxious “French Augmented Sixths.”

The original title hides a utopian dream that has yet to be realized. It started on an early June afternoon: Sabato, Catherine, Monty, myself, and several others gathered in the bucolic pastoral paradise known to a select Amherst few as “Narnia.” For the unacquainted, Narnia refers to a small estate and grounds behind Amherst College’s co-op, the Zu. Although it is barely a half-mile outside the town center, hardly anyone knows of its existence. It is almost entirely surrounded by hedges and woods. The only reason Zu alumni know it is because of its location directly behind Zu-quarters. A gravel path leads directly back into the woods. After ten meters (and, appropriately, a lamppost), one suddenly bursts into what might as well be the grounds of a 19th century manor. One is entirely removed from the preceding place and time: hence, “Narnia.”

Narnia encompasses no more than two acres, at the center of which is an abandoned two-story mansion. The college half-heartedly boards up most first-story windows, but if you stand on tip-toes you can see the old ballroom and its decaying chandelier. The result is something out of Grey Gardens or Psycho - although somehow the building manages to convince visitors that a murderous schizophrenic is the last thing you’d find inside. To the immediate west is another boarded-up complex: this time, the stables, or, in more traditional times, perhaps the servants’ quarters.

In back of the mansion two tall rows of Italian pine trees separate two smaller yards. The spring dots the north end with tiny blue flowers, and in the warm months Zu beings lounge beneath New England’s version of a baobab: a twenty foot high, thick, warty trunk punctuated by the occasional knot and thick, elm-like leaves. Descend fifteen feet to the south, and you’ll get a crop circle in the middle of the resulting yard - no doubt the product of an old fountain or aliens - and a stack of mysterious, ten-foot-high, Stonehenge-like building fragments.

Narnia’s crown jewel is its front meadow - a bounding, downhill stretch of field divided by a gown-like pine and weeping willow at its center. The mansion’s brick steps still run down to its western end. A prim, eerily well-kept stone path bisects the field’s two halves and lends a queer sense of order to something so rolling and seemingly ungoverned. I can stand in the middle, point to different spots in the meadow, and note their various significances. Each corresponds to different frolicks friends, lovers, and I had in years past: wiffleball games, camp outs, outdoor sex and the like.

Narnia's front meadow in early May

That lovely June afternoon, we gathered after graduation and laid out a checkered picnic blanket on the front lawn. We languished in the shade for thirty minutes or so, whereupon Scott arrived, carrying a fourteen-inch cheesecake lavished with sugar-glazed blackberries. Devoid of plates or utensils, we joyously tore at the cheesecake carcass with our bare hands. Having permanently left the concrete latrine known as New York City only days before, I was in a sheer state of bliss. Urban claustrophobia tends to fade in life’s rear-view mirror when replaced by blackberry-studded pastoral symphonies such as that Sunday afternoon.

I might add that all of it came at a low cost. This gave us the idea of creating a workers’ paradise through fatty desserts. The key, we decided, is to eliminate the accumulation of unearned wealth: inheritances, trusts, etc. The first part of the solution is to set a cap on the amount of private property an individual or business can own: anything frivolous and unjustified, such as a third country house or poodle, would be returned to the public domain. This is insufficient, however: wealth in monetary form would still remain in the hands of the wealthiest and their armies of investment bankers. The final solution? Eliminate the accumulation of capital in banked form and replace the dollar with the cheesecake. A cheesecake’s value would be based on freshness and overall quality: hence, the fact that Frederick Doucherton’s great grandfather earned millions more than a hundred years before he was born would be moot. The figurative and literal cheesecake would be long-decayed and therefore worthless. Mr. Doucherton would have to earn, or, in this case, bake his own keep.

Some say the “cheesecake solution” would cause the US to descend into anarchy and lead to a dictatorship of the bakeries. Given the way things are going, is that really so bad? At least we’d have something filling to eat. Don’t even try to tell me that in the long run, a delicious cheesecake adorned with gooey berries and sugary glaze isn’t worth more than a few dollar bills.

Un soir de juillet à Dakar. Il a plu toute la journée. Sur la piste de l’aéroport international Leopold Sedar Senghor, la chaleur humide m’envahit. La nuit est tombée sur la capitale et c’est sous les lumières lointaines de la ville que mon séjour au Sénégal commence.

Plus tard, sur le bas côté de la route, j’entrevois les étals de fleurs et de fruits recouverts. Les commerçants sont rentrés. Au sortir de la ville, les pelleteuses trônent au milieu du chantier présidentiel de l’autoroute à péage. Puis le chemin vers le village de Warang se poursuit dans le noir. Déjà le pays joue avec mon impatience. On ne le dévore pas, on le déguste.

Sur les ondes, une voix connue parvient à mes oreilles. Celle de Youssou N’Dour. Une icône au Sénégal. Celui qui a conquis les frontières de l’occident pour s’imposer comme un chanteur reconnu. Celui-là même qui, né dans une famille modeste installée dans la médina dakaroise, a su s’enrichir sans renier ses origines. Et à écouter le chauffeur en parler, il inspire la fierté à un peuple. Une population dont le besoin de reconnaissance est immense. J’en aurai l’assurance deux semaines plus tard.

Toubab, toubab, toubab !

9h du matin. Il fait déjà 30°c. La peau moite, je sors de ma chambre. Et j’aperçois l’océan Atlantique. Des pirogues multicolores s’éloignent vers le large. Sur la petite côte, outre le tourisme, c’est la pêche qui fait vivre. Le soir à partir de 17h, les hommes reviennent sur le bord de la plage. Le port d’Mbour, non loin de Warang, grouille de monde alors. Des centaines de ces navires de fortune accostent et déchargent la pêche de la journée. Les coquilles de toutes sortes de crustacés et coquillages envahissent l’étendue sablée sur 500 mètres. A même le sol, les femmes décortiquent, trient, lavent la poiscaille. Une odeur pestilentielle se répand. Bientôt la négociation commence. La belle affaire pour les heureux pêcheurs de requins. Leur chaire et surtout leurs ailerons sont très appréciés des Japonais.

Après un petit-déjeuner commun (les Sénégalais sont assez friands, comme nous, de la baguette. Un « héritage » colon certainement), je décide d’aller faire un tour au village. Je m’engage alors sur la piste de terre rouge encore gorgée d’eau, après les pluies diluviennes de la nuit. Les égouts ne font pas encore partie du paysage routier du Sénégal. Je croise d’abord des chèvres, grandes amies de la population. Elles sont partout, et se goinfrent à cœur joie dans les décharges en plein air. On rencontre aussi des poules, des ânes, des zébus et plus rarement des singes rouges échappés des réserves. La cohabitation avec l’homme se passe bien, dirons-nous.

Passées ces élucubrations sur la faune sénégalaise, je poursuis mon chemin. Les villas bâties par les Européens tranchent avec l’architecture simple et parfois dégradée de l’habitat sénégalais. Mais la population locale ne s’en fâche pas. Au contraire. La plupart de ceux avec qui je dialoguerai me diront que c’est une chance. Pour eux le tourisme et l’installation de « riches » Européens sont synonymes de travail, de ventes, et donc d’amélioration de leurs conditions de vie. Une belle façon de voir les choses.

Plus j’avance vers le « centre », plus les gens m’interpellent. Les enfants d’abord. « Toubab, toubab, toubab ! », crient-ils. Ça veut dire « blanc » en wolof. Mais l’histoire du mot est particulière. A l’origine les seuls médecins, excepté les manitous ou autres guérisseurs, étaient des blancs. Des toubib. Mais la difficulté pour les locaux de prononcer « toubib » a donné lieu à une petite transformation pour donner « toubab ». Depuis c’est resté dans le langage pour désigner les populations à la peau claire.

Les adultes ne sont pas moins discrets. Au Sénégal, on se dit bonjour, on se parle, on apprend à se connaître. C’est aussi l’occasion pour essayer de commercer. Ballades en charrette, taxi, excursions variées, ventes de tableaux, les Sénégalais proposent tout pour peu qu’ils puissent acheter du riz le soir ou de l’essence. L’inflation a fait tellement de dégâts. Plus 200% sur le prix du riz sur les premiers trimestres de 2008. Quant au coût de l’essence, il dépasse les 1 euro. Une fortune pour le Sénégalais moyen dont le salaire atteint rarement les 250 euros par mois !

Le lion n’est pas mort

Dire que le Sénégalais est envahissant c’est finalement être passé à côté du Sénégal. Il est l’incarnation même de l’hospitalité. D’ailleurs la population n’est pas peu fière de ce concept érigé en principe national, la Teranga. « Terre d’accueil » en wolof. Elle le répète, le chante, l’inscrit sur ses pirogues, ses restaurants, ses hôtels. Et c’est la simple vérité.

L’un des emblème du Sénégal est le lion. Un animal que l’on trouve peu dans le pays, mais qui représente pour le peuple les vertus du courage et de la loyauté. Loyaux, les Sénégalais le sont dans toutes leurs relations, dans la mesure où vous les respecter. J’ai fait la connaissance de plusieurs d’entre eux, et depuis mon retour en France ils ont pris la peine d’appeler régulièrement.

A peine le dialogue entamé, ils ont vite fait de vous inviter à déjeuner ou à dîner. J’ai accepté cette invitation par deux fois. Et c’est la plus belle manière, la plus simple, de savoir qui sont les Sénégalais.

La première fois, Mustapha, un menuisier averti et amateur de foot, m’a conviée dans sa modeste maison, dans les quartiers populaires de Mbour. J’ai poussé la grille et suis arrivée dans une petite cour de sable. Du poisson séchait au soleil. Quelques mangues trempaient dans une bassine d’eau. Et au fond, dans la cuisine, la famille de Mustapha avait déjà entamé le déjeuner. Réunis autour d’une grande plâtrée de Mafé, ils m’ont fait le signe de me joindre à eux. Quelle convivialité ! Et quel délice épicée ! Mes papilles s’en souviennent. Ensuite Mustapha m’a fait asseoir sur une chaise dans l’allée et m’a servi de la mangue fraîchement découpée. J’ai eu beau dire que c’était trop, son regard me disait : « ne dit rien, profite, ça me fait plaisir ».

La deuxième fois, je m’arrêtais dans une échoppe de tissus. J’achetais quelques mètres pour faire une nappe. Albert, l’un des vendeurs, est ensuite venu jusqu’à l’hôtel m’apporter la nappe confectionnée par le couturier d’en face. Il m’a certainement trouvée sympathique et m’a invitée à déjeuner chez sa femme le lendemain. J’y suis allée bien sûr. Dans une large cour, j’ai d’abord observé l’un de ses amis pêcheurs laver les poissons attrapés le matin même, les arroser de citron vert et les griller. A côté de moi, sa femme Khoudia a épluché un bon kilo d’échalotes, puis les a mélangées à du piment frais. Un savoureux plat que nous avons déguster à la main. Je reste encore émue par l’accueil de gens pourtant pauvres mais souriants, cultivés, et volontaires. La solidarité n’est pas une idée au Sénégal, c’est une réalité.

L’arbre sacré

Le second emblème sénégalais est le baobab. Un arbre qui fait partie intégrante du paysage. Pas un village n’est dépourvu de cet arbre sacré. Car si les Sénégalais sont pour 90% d’entre eux musulmans et 10% chrétiens, ils se retrouvent tous dans l’animisme. La pratique est assez peu courante, mais certaines croyances restent vivaces. Au pied du baobab, les Sénégalais se recueillent, se regroupent, déclarent, font les discours, et même enterrent. Enfin enterraient. Car les Sérères, l’une des ethnies du Sénégal, des agriculteurs, avaient pour coutume de ne pas enterrer ceux qui ne donnaient pas à la terre. Mais pour leurs accorder une sépulture, ils décidaient de placer les corps dans le tronc du baobab accessible par des cavités naturelles. Cette pratique est aujourd’hui interdite.

A vrai dire l’aura dont il bénéficie est compréhensible. Devant tant de grandeur et de majesté, j’ai voulu croire à l’existence d’un pouvoir de la nature. D’ailleurs le surnom de cet arbre en dit long sur sa réputation : le pachyderme du Sénégal.

Mais la faune et la flore du pays ne sont que secondaires. La vraie découverte du Sénégal est celle de sa population.

Nina Chauvet

Note : pour rester tout à fait impartiale, je tiens à souligner que certaines personnes ne sont pas aussi loyales que ne le suggère l’un des emblèmes du pays. Une arrestation par des gendarmes assurant la circulation m’a convaincue que le bakchich était une pratique courante. Les forces de l’ordre, notamment les gendarmes, font pourtant partie des salariés privilégiés. Ils se permettent de ponctionner un peu plus le porte-monnaie de personnes appauvries. Une honte ! Et qu’on ne me dise pas que c’est courant en Afrique.

My first Baobab baby is in his earth now! I put the 2 small seeds in warm water for 24 hours while the strongest one started to swell up. This morning I replaced the water with dissolved coco earth. Perfect substrate for a young, vulnerable seed.

My palm seeds are in the artificial greenhouse (plastic bag with moist sand) for a couple of days untill they product their first white roots. I can’t wait to see them! ^^

ok, so i thogt this chapter is not that inteesting to post in blog originaly, but when u think better, why not?

next couple of posts will talk about tree and its biology. And most importantly tree diseases and things that affect tree look. Basically all stuff that makes trees visually interesting and which are not simulated in tree generators.

//////////////////////

Introduction:

When considering Virtual Tree Generation, it is important to understand what is the biological nature of a tree. In this chapter, important biological elements and processes related to trees will be discussed, which are important in some way for tree modeling.

1.1 Tree

A Tree is a woody plant and its’ main trunk is usually

un branched. Usually a tree is divided into three major parts those are the crown, trunk and the roots. The crown consists of branches, twigs, and leaves.

Trees do not heal their injured tissues; instead the cells of injured tissues change and become a barrier for diseases and further decay. The layers of new tree tissues usually cover a wound. The changed wood tissue is called a “reaction zone”. In many tree species it is easy to recognize, this wood as it is often darker in color compared to healthy wood tissue (Whiting et al. 2005).

A trunk is commonly defined as the main stem of a plant which serves as a support for leaves and a connection with the roots. The trunk also serves as a water storage tank, for example in the case of baobab trees. Water and minerals collected through roots are then transmitted through the trunk to the leaves. The trunk itself consists of two main types of wood. The Xylem is a supporting wood, and Phloem is wood for water transportation (Whiting et al. 2005).

tree structure

Fig 4.Wood layer structures. Picture taken from: David Whiting, Robert Cox, and Carol O’Meara; 2005. Tree Growth and Decay. GardenNotes #611.

The bark of a tree serves as a protective layer from different types of damage and the Phloem is a tissue beneath the bark. The main purpose of the Phloem layer is to transport sugars and carbohydrates produced by leaves and to feed the roots. Xylem is a wood tissue which acts as a supporting material for the whole tree.

Wood which grows at the beginning of summer is used for water transportation inside the tree. If enlarged, its structure remains tubular in its shape, while tree tissue which grown at the end of summer is much more dense in its structure and serves as a support material for the overall tree (Whiting et al. 2005).

The “reaction zone“ does not always stop decay. Decay can easily advance in Xylem wood tissue which grows in early summer and serves as a water transportation system inside a tree. If the reaction zone would stop decay effectively, it would also plug Xylem tubes. As a result, the water supply inside a tree would be compromised and the tree would die (Whiting et al. 2005).

inside of tree

Fig 5. Decay creates a hole in the center of a tree. The darker area is a reaction zone. Picture taken from: David Whiting, Robert Cox, and Carol O’Meara; 2005. Tree Growth and Decay. GardenNotes #611.

When the wall of a trunk has a hole which leads to empty space in the center of the trunk, the tree becomes coincidentally weaker, and is considered hazardous. Tree holes are candidates for many flora and fauna species to use as a home.

Such inhabitants usually contribute to wood decay, and the death of the tree. Holes are sometimes filled with rainwater, which makes rotting possible. (Forest Resources Extension)

tre ee hole

Figure 6. The strength of a tree is strongly reduced by a hole. Picture taken from: David Whiting, Robert Cox, and Carol O’Meara; 2005. Tree Growth and Decay. GardenNotes #611.

There are two main types of trees according to how new layers of wood grow. The first is “Exogenous” which are trees that grow outwards; meaning each year a new row of wood is being placed on the outside of the existing trunk beneath the bark. The other type is called “Endogenous” which, unlike the “Exogenous”, places new layers inside the trunk.

While most trees belong to the Exogenous category, others like Palms, Dragon trees and Cacti grow by extending themselves from inside. Usually each new layer of wood grows in one year, but that strongly depends on rain periods. A growth layer which is produced in one season is called an “Annual Ring” (Bodirlau et al. 2007). By counting the annual rings of a tree one can determine the trees age. The science of tree age determination is called “Dendrochronology.” Some trees in deserts might have a new layer after each rain season, which is not necessarily regular, and some trees may produce two layers of wood a year. In tropical areas where it is always wet, the annual rings on trees might be not seen at all.

————————-

You can visit my web page here

and see some “manually” modeled trees here

dont like english? u can (try) readig it in lithuanian or anny other language here! alternative, has no lithuanian

[A large Baobab on the road to Albarkaize]

Thursday morning I woke just before sunrise to pack my single bag: mosquito net, binoculars, bird book, 1L water, camera, notepad and a few other small items for my trip to Gaya. I arrived at the bus station and caught the 8:30 bus to the city of Gaya. Due to rainy season the road was in horrible shape. A trip that is typically 2-3hrs took closer to 4. Despite the uncomfortable and long ride, the scenery was beautiful. About half way there the scenery became greener with lots of palm trees and significantly taller millet. In many villages people planted millet in their concession, leaving only small paths to their huts and houses. I arrived in Gaya after noon and went to the reported location of the radio station to discover that it had moved. I decided to stop for lunch at a restaurant which reportedly served delicious beef with a mushroom cream sauce and bread. It was great and to my surprise they even had satellite tv. I watched the end of Mission Impossible with subtitles in Arabic. After lunch I walked to the radio station. Their new location was on top of a small mesa on the edge of town. Their setup was impressive by Niger standards and to supplement their income they also opened a cybercafe and a bar/restaurant. Although a little less accessible, the location offers reasonably priced services and great views. I worked with one staff member to evaluate their setup and problems and assisted with a few computer issues. I spent several hours at the radio station and then left to catch a ride to Albarkaize.

The road to Albarkaize is always in bad shape since it’s an all dirt road. As a result the quality of transport is also reduced. I got lucky and only had to wait about 15 minutes to catch a ride in the back of an small, over crowded, truck. I was the next to last person to get on, so I got stuck in the very center sitting mostly on people’s feet. The ride was somewhat painful and probably a tie for the worst ride yet, in-country. The ride took about 1.5 hours. I was dropped off on the side of the road surrounded by palms, baobabs, and tree covered mesas. I began the walk to my friend Kim’s, mostly Fulani, village. The Fulans are a mostly nomadic and very vibrant ethnic group scattered throughout Africa. The women typically wear bright clothing and put coins in their braided hair. The men also wear unique clothing and accessories. One of the most unusual being blue rubber shoes. I was met by many friendly Fulans throughout my stay.
I arrived at a village and people immediately noticed my camera so I had to stop and take a few pictures. It’s a good idea to put your camera away before you enter a village if you want to avoid a potentially overwhelming amount of attention. Luckily this time wasn’t so bad and it turned out to be Kim’s village. I arrived a little before sunset, watched Kim carry water from the well, and relaxed for a while before eating a delicious meal of cheesy pasta.

The next morning the real adventure began. Kim’s friend Zara came over and we went on a bush walk to visit some of her friends, one of which had a baby one week prior. One week after birth, children are officially given a name. The day long social event begins with prayers in the morning followed by food and socializing. We just stopped by briefly. The journey was long, probably covered more than 10 miles round trip . I saw lots of birds including Senegal Parrots and a yellow-crowned bishop. The landscape ranged from towering millet to rice patties to grass covered flood plains leading to the edge of the Niger River. By the end of rainy season, much of the area is covered with water creating the perfect environment for thousands of migrating birds that come during winter. The fishing village of Albarkaize sits on the edge of these waters and is home to a bird sanctuary. The village apparently also hosts an incredible fish festival. I plan to return next winter when large flocks of birds have returned. The day’s adventure came to a close as the sun set on one of the area’s largest Baobabs. Easily over 500 years old, its slightly, shiny bark reflected the sunset beautifully. Back at Kim’s village, I enjoyed another delicious meal with pounded cassava root and tuna while listening to a summary of the opening ceremony of the olympic games on BBC. At the end of the day I was exhausted, but deeply appreciative of my uniquely African day!

Yesterday we slept a little late and enjoyed homemade crepes just before the monthly shuttle to the area picked us up and headed back to Dosso. We stopped in Gaya and I picked up some items not available in Dosso including oranges and grapefruit. I could not believe that the large grapefruits were the equivalent of about 12 cents and they’re delicious. Interestingly, almost all of the cirtus fruit sold here has green skin. On the car ride back we also grabbed some locally made bread and fried cheese! I’ll be staying put in Dosso for the next several weeks! Kala Tonton!

7 sierpnia 2008, czwartek

Pewnego dnia wybrałem się na krótki spacer do lasu sawanny

Można o niej napisać tak:

Jest po prostu pięknie! Już w pierwszy wieczór powalił mnie z nóg widok dziedzińca katolickiego hostelu z dwiema potężnymi rozłożystymi palmami, których pnia nie zdołałbym objąć. Wszędzie rosną bananowce, a laterytowa czerwona ziemia niesłychanie lśni w zachodzie słońca. W ogrodach hodowane są ananasy. Pogoda: ani razu nie musiałem założyć kapelusza i jak dotąd nie zużyłem ani kropli olejku chroniącego przed słońcem. Niebo jest cały czas przesłonięte delikatną chmurą – obłokiem pary wodnej, który właśnie co zdążył wyparować z zaczynającej się 100 kilometrów stąd równikowej dżungli. Spotkany przeze mnie dziś Tim – ekspata z USA, który mieszka już w Rwandzie 3 lata – potwierdził tylko moje przepuszczenia: The weather here is the magic. Nie jest za ciepło, nie jest za zimno. Jest w sam raz. Na oko 22 stopnie. Każdego dnia. Ta sama mgiełka na niebie chroniąca przed słońcem, ale przepuszczająca wystarczającą ilość światła, ta sama temperatura, ten sam kojący wietrzyk. Po stokroć lepiej niż w Polsce, gdy z niej wyjeżdżałem.

Tak rosną ananasy. Wiedzieliście? Ja się przyznam, że myślałem, że szukać ich trzeba na drzewach :)

Wysoko na niebie krąży co najmniej kilka drapieżnych ptaków. Co chwila nisko nad ziemią, jakieś góra 10 metrów nad nią przelatują klucze pelikanów i innych żurawiopodobnych ptaków, gęgając przy tym tak jak nasze polskie gęsi. Lub po cichu wyskakuje z drzew stado śnieżnobiałych ptaków i dostojnie przelatują mi przed oczami. Scena jak z filmu o Afryce, tyle, że ja to widzę naprawdę.

To chyba bambus

Agathe mówi, że to nie baobab. Nic tam, tys piknie

Zapytałem Paula, czy mają tu niebezpieczne zwierzęta. Nie. Skorpiony? Nie ma. Lwy? Tylko w rezerwacie Akagera kilkadziesiąt kilometrów stąd. Inne niebezpieczne zwięrzęta? Nie. Juliette powiedziała, że jadowite węże w kraju są, ale w Nyamata nigdy nie widziała.

Mała termitiera

Wiedziałem że samolot ma lądować już po zmroku i miałem taki plan, że jeszcze na pokładzie spryskam się sprayem przeciw komarom. Przerażająca wizja bestii dopadających mnie chmarą i z miejsca zarażających śmiertelną malarią była paraliżująca. Tymczasem już w pierwszy wieczór  usiadłem z Paulem na tarasie i w cieplutką noc zapytałem go gdzie są komary. Powiedział, że nie ma. I jest to niemal prawda! Bo czym jest jeden komar widziany raz na dwa, trzy dni? Nie żartuję.

A czy już wspomniałem, że wszędzie gdzie nie spojrzysz są góry? Nie skaliste, a takie bieszczadzkie, ale gdzie nie spojrzysz żadnego płaskiego fragmentu horyzontu. Porośnięte lasami, poprzetykanymi licznymi zabudowaniami pagórki, staczające się w głębokie doliny; ciągnące się daleko widoki widziane z serpentyn dróg wijących się po zboczach.

To jest powód, dlaczego napisałem, że mógłbym tu mieszkać wiecznie. Po prostu raj na ziemi, w pełnym tych słów znaczeniu.

Jakbyście mieli takie widoki w pracy, też by wam się nie chciało

Ale można napisać i tak:

Gdy laterytową drogą przejedzie samochód, z powodu wzbitego kurzu nie ma czym oddychać. A i bez samochodu nie sposób znieść ciągle umorusanych spodni w czerwonej glinie.

Miałem nadzieję, że wracając w listopadzie do Polski zaskoczę wszystkich opalenizną; tymczasem z powodu ciągle unoszącej się chmurki nadal nie jestem opalony ani trochę. Poza tym jak jednego dnia było bezchmurnie, słońce tak przygrzało, że już po godzinie miałem dość.

Wczoraj jak stałem pod okienkiem baru, zobaczyłem jak za barmanką po słupie zbiegł czarny szczur lub inne licho do niego podobne i zniknął gdzieś za kontuarem. Barmanka nawet nie zareagowała. I ja się tu każdego dnia stołuję!

Idąc do toalety spłoszyłem spod drzwi mysz lub inne licho do niej podobne, które wdrapało się jednym susem po pionowej (!) trzymetrowej ścianie i dreptało gdzieś po dachu.

Dziś rano podszedł do mnie robotnik z budowy i zapytał czy chcę zobaczyć węża. Jakiego węża – zapytałem. Żmiję. Poszedłem za nim i tuż za bramą, na skraju drogi zobaczyłem widok, który mi zjeżył włosy na plecach. Co najmniej półtorej metrowy całkowicie czarny wąż, grubszy od mojego nadgarstka. Był już martwy, ale i tak nie odważyłem się go dotknąć. Robotnicy zresztą też. Powiedzieli, że jego jad jest zabójczy, a co gorsze gatunek ten słynie z plucia jadem na odległość. Trafienie w oczy co najmniej oślepia, a potrafi i zabić. Robotnik powiedział, że węże widzi ciągle jak pracuje w terenie. Według niego jeszcze gorsze są czarne kobry. Potem Paul powiedział, że wczoraj wieczorem znaleźli tą żmiję na terenie telecentrum, zabili trafiając łopatą w gardło.

Czarna żmija

Miejsce cięcia na szyi węża było już całe pokryte masą drobnych czarnych mróweczek; tych samych, które kilka dni temu oblazły mi cały bagaż, bo zostawiłem w nim zaczętą paczkę czipsów. Zresztą one nie są największym problemem – widok ruszającego się całego bagażu z milionami mrówek to co najwyżej dyskomfort. Po ziemi biegają za to inne mrówki, długie na bez mała dwa centymetry, których żwaczki widać na stojąco. Choć jako student biologii uwielbiałem mrówki, te tylko mam odwagę przepędzać książką. A one jakby rozumiały co się stało, biegną z powrotem ku tobie. Pozostaje ci tylko uciekać. W powietrzu unoszą się błonkówki, długie na minimum pięć centymetrów. Kiedyś mnie w Polsce użądliła taka centymetrowa i bolało jak diabli.

Jakaś bycza błonkówka, bliska krewna naszej osy

A gdy to piszę, słyszę nad sobą brzęczenie komara.

Można pisać i tak i tak. I pewnie jeszcze wiele można do tego dodać. Wczoraj o przyrodzie Rwandy wysmoliłem artykuł na 5 stron w wordzie, a dziś postanowiłem go skasować. Bo dziś widziałem węża, wczoraj wieczorem widziałem szczury i myszy, ale za to też dziś widziałem stado białych ptaków i przyjrzałem się bliżej tym pięknym drzewom, co wyglądają jak długie chude anteny, rozgałęzione parasolowato dopiero na czubkach. Postanowiłem, że o przyrodzie Rwandy będę pisał po kawałku, tak jak o ludziach. Tylko o drobnych aspektach. Bo wiele mnie jeszcze pewne zadziwi i wiele razy się jeszcze pomyliłbym jakbym chciał stwierdzić coś w tej kwestii ostatecznie.

[Local Kids & Remains of the Dosso Baobab]

Sunday, I went to go pay my final respects to the ancient Baobab that welcomed visitors to the city of Dosso. A few weeks ago the tree fell, probably due to winds and rains of the season. A little more than a month a ago I stood next to the tree for more than an hour as I waiting for an early morning ride to Niamey. (see left) Baobab’s can live for 2000 years or more. While this was a large one, it was far from the largest in the region. Thursday I plan to go to Gaya, an area of Dosso that supposedly still has some Baobab forests.

The last couple of days have been low key. I stopped by an international fair here in Dosso and picked up some beautiful, hand-died fabrics. I plan to get a few shirts made from them. (see photo below) One of them is especially bright, but bright colors go over well in Africa. Last night the rains started around midnight. The sun is only just starting to come out now. I still don’t have power.

Thanks to Google Reader I can now read the latest news from a variety of publication and website while offline (using Google Gears). You can check out some of the more interesting articles I’ve read using the Links to Links section to the right.

The National Geographic Photo Contest is going on. What photos should I submit? You can check them all out (almost) on my flickr site.

Technorati Tags: Niger, Dosso, Baobab, Peace Corps

Drie kunstenaars - Dirk Lenaerts, Rolf Mulder en Joris Michielsen - hebben een gigantisch stalen kunstwerk, dat vijf Afrikaanse baobab bomen voorstelt, neergepoot op het Kievitplein. Aan het kunstwerk, dat de naam "Qu’y vit?" meekreeg, hangt een prijskaartje van 250.000 euro.

"Baobab-bomen zijn bomen met een heel eigen verhaal. In Afrika zijn ze een speelplaats voor kinderen en een ontmoetingsplek voor ouderen. De organische vormen van de bomen zullen voor de mensen op het Kievitplein herkenbaar zijn en hen een rustig gevoel geven te midden van de grote gebouwen", legt Lenaerts uit.

El aviador francés Antoine, dibujaba acuarelas y escribía para sobrellevar como podía su exilio en Estados Unidos, lejos de su madre, su tierra y su esposa Consuelo Suncín cuya relación tenía los días contados.

El fruto fue un cuento de apariencia infantil pero con un gran trasfondo llamado “El Principito” (“Le Petit Prince”). Era el año 1943.

La fábula del principito que deja el asteroide B612 donde vive rodeado de tres volcanes, árboles baobab y una rosa, para conocer el resto del universo, se ha convertido en el libro francés más leído y más traducido de la historia. Y es que “todas las personas mayores fueron al principio niños”.

Más información en: RTVE

Hari ini saya tidak ingin ngeracau tentang PNS, apalagi mo ngelucu soal PNS (dan blog ini emang gak ada niat mo ngelucu, bikin mules iya, hehe…). Kali ini saya mau sok jadi sastrawan kayak Gunawan Mohammad neh. Cuma kalo entar jadinya kayak Srimulat, mbok ya jangan diketawain ya…

Konon suatu ketika, para dewa menanam sebuah pohon yang bernama Baobab di lembah sungai Kongo. Pohon ini memiliki sejumlah keistimewaan, salah satunya adalah umurnya yang panjang banget, bisa mencapai ribuan tahun. Tetapi si Baobab resek karena tanahnya lembek sehingga tubuhnya gampang tenggelam. Para dewa pun jatuh kasihan, maka dipindahkanlah si baobab itu ke pegunungan Bulan di Ruwenzori, Uganda.

Tapi dasar bandel dan tak mau bersyukur, baobab tetap saja mengeluh. Kali ini soal tanah yang lembab. “Maumu gimana sih?” grundel para dewa sewot bukan main. Saking murkanya, mereka lalu melemparkan pohon itu ke sebuah gurun di Afrika nan gersang. “Biar susah dapat air sekalian,” sungut para dewa. Karena kelewat bernafsu, lemparan maha kuat itu bikin baobab jungkir balik. “Kepala” baobab nyungsep ke tanah, sementara “kaki-kaki”-nya menggapai-gapai langit. Makanya tuh pohon modelnya kayak kebalik gitu.

Walau marah, para dewa itu maha pengasih. Meski dikirim ke gurun nan kerontang, pohon ini dilengkapi tempat penyimpan air berupa batang berbentuk botol. Fungsinya mirip batang kaktus atau punuk onta. Sekali air diisap lewat akarnya yang panjang, cadangan air itu langsung disimpan dalam batangnya. Daya tampungnya lumayan besar, sampai 120.000 liter!

Itulah kisah sebuah pohon yang tidak mensyukuri setiap nikmat yang telah diberikan kepadanya. Kadang yang namanya usia itu bisa menjadi cobaan bagi yang memilikinya. Ada yang diberi pendek umur, ada yang diberi umur panjang. Panjang pendek umur kita bukan suatu ukuran kesuksesan seseorang. Yang menjadi ukuran adalah seberapa berarti kita mengisi umur kita untuk hal-hal yang berguna.

Ada seseorang yang cuma diberi umur pendek, tapi selama hidupnya diisi dengan hal-hal yang bermanfaat. Umur bukan lagi menjadi ukuran. Hari ini saya cuma ingin merenungi apa saja yang telah saya jalani selama ini. Tidak mesti harus tiap tahun saya melakukannya, tapi paling tidak selama setahun ini ada satu waktu dimana saya cuma pengen duduk merenung dan intropeksi diri.

NB: Gak ada yang ngucapin Happy B’day ke gua neh?? ASEM!

The European Union has approved Baobab Pulp as a food processing ingredient under the EU’s novel food legislation.

two other links

African Agriculture - Baobab extract approved in EU ingredients market

Food Navigator - Baobab - newest kid on the novel foods block

This has been covered quite broadly, mainly with a focus on the potential US$ 1 billion a year market and the benefit that could flow to African Farmers. There are a few other issues that are of interest.

Novel Food Process

The Novel Food process requires application to be made for the approval of the use of foods and food ingredients not in common use for human consumption prior to 1997. A preliminary examination of the list of applications made under this legislation reveals:

there is an application for the use of high pressure processing technology in fruit juice production

This process is long and complicated, the process for Baobab took almost 2 years. To date there have been 32 approvals and 3 rejections.

There is another route for products which can be shown to be “considered by a national food assessment body as “substantially equivalent” to existing foods or food ingredients” termed the Notification Procedure. This process is shorter and some 110 products have been approved.

I do not claim to be fully conversant with this legislation and its application and implications, but can see that achieving approval is far from trivial - entrepreneurs should make sure that they build the necessary expenditure and time into their business plans for the commercialisation of a novel food in Europe.

Market Size & Farmer Income

The figures being bandied about with “up to” or “as much as” qualification, seem to be based on a report by by Ben Bennett from the UK’s Natural Resources Institute (NRI) for the Regional Trade Facilitation Programme (RTFP) - Foreign Direct Investment in South Africa: How big is Southern Africa’s natural product opportunity and what trade issues impede sectoral development?. This report makes a number of assumptions and totals the value of all products, not just pulp, from the Baobab with market prices to come to US$ 910 million. The real potential benefit to African farmers of this approval is much less given the post farmer value chain costs and the fact that a 75% loss from raw fruit is assumed.

A Baobab Pulp Collection scheme in Malawi in 2005 paid R 150 per ton (already a half of what collectors receive for marula in South Africa) for pulp collected at the farmer. The values for the products assumed for the report referred to above ranged from 600 to 8 000 US$/ton.

The details are sketchy but what is evident is the possibility that farmers receive only a small part of the total income from the utilisation of a unique natural resource. This raises the question of whether the products sold are able to sustain high value addition.

What is important though is that the base is now in place and that opportunities can be addressed and the benefit to the “owners of the resource” can be optimised.

]]> http://agribusiness.pl.wordpress.com/2008/07/16/baobab-approved-in-eu-notes-on-the-novel-food-process/ Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:23:51 +0000 agribusiness http://agribusiness.pl.wordpress.com/2008/07/16/baobab-approved-in-eu-notes-on-the-novel-food-process/

The European Union has approved Baobab Pulp as a food processing ingredient under the EU’s novel food legislation.

from: BBC News
(click image for full story online)

 

two other links

African Agriculture - Baobab extract approved in EU ingredients market

Food Navigator - Baobab - newest kid on the novel foods block

This has been covered quite broadly, mainly with a focus on the potential US$ 1 billion a year market and the benefit that could flow to African Farmers. There are a few other issues that are of interest.

Novel Food Process

The Novel Food process requires application to be made for the approval of the use of foods and food ingredients not in common use for human consumption prior to 1997. A preliminary examination of the list of applications made under this legislation reveals: