Some important wild plants yielding alternative foods for nutritional security in arid region of Rajasthan

Abstract

Wild plants assume importance as alternative sources of food, especially in the areas receiving frequent droughts and famines. Prosopis cineraria, Capparis decidua and Acacia Senegal are some of the important plants found in the arid region of Rajasthan, which provide food supplement and means of survival during time of hardships. Rural people of Rajasthan have a deep knowledge about the use of famine foods. Alternative food consumption is common in rural areas of Rajasthan. Some of the alternative foods have made its place in menus of most of five star hotels and with increasing tourism demand for it is likely to increase. Thus this has potential to improve rural economy of the area as well if suitable marketing network is developed to help farmers to sell their produce from wild plants. Organic certification will also be an important aspect of this strategy.

Full text

Some important wild plants yielding alternative foods
for nutritional security in arid region of Rajasthan
V.P. Tewari
Forest Resource Management & Economics Division, Arid Forest Research
Institute, P.O. Krishi mandi, New Pali Road, Jodhpur 342005
SUMMARY
Wild plants assume importance as alternative sources of food, especially in the areas
receiving frequent droughts and famines. Prosopis cineraria, Capparis decidua and
Acacia Senegal are some of the important plants found in the arid region of Rajasthan,
which provide food supplement and means of survival during time of hardships. Rural
people of Rajasthan have a deep knowledge about the use of famine foods. Alternative
food consumption is common in rural areas of Rajasthan. Some of the alternative
foods have made its place in menus of most of five star hotels and with increasing
tourism demand for it is likely to increase. Thus this has potential to improve rural
economy of the area as well if suitable marketing network is developed to help
farmers to sell their produce from wild plants. Organic certification will also be an
important aspect of this strategy.
INTRODUCTION
About two-third geographical area of Rajasthan falls under extreme desertic
conditions where agriculture failure is very common due to frequent drought,
sometimes continuously for 3-4 years. In these circumstances, wild plants like
Prosopis cineraria (Khejri), Capparis decidua (Kair) and Acacia Senegal (Kumat)
assume prominence as alternative sources of food for survival during famines. The
importance of wild plants in subsistence agriculture in the developing world as a food
supplement and as a means of survival during times of drought and famine has been
overlooked. Generally, the consumption of such so-called ‘alternative-food’ is still
being under-estimated. Rural people of Rajasthan have a deep knowledge about the
use of alternative plants when the staple food is in short supply. Alternative food
consumption is common in rural areas of Rajasthan. Famine is an old scourge of
mankind and food security has been a primary concern of individuals and societies
over the entire period of recorded history. In times of scarcity or when staple food is
in short supply people are dependent upon various species of forest for food and other
products.

The consumption of wild plants seems more common and widespread in food
insecure areas where a wide range of species is consumed. The linkage has given rise
to the notion of ‘famine-foods’, plants consumed only at times of food stress and
therefore an indicator of famine conditions. Local people know about the importance
and the contribution of wild plants to their daily diet as well as being aware of
possible health hazards such as stomach irritation occasionally occurring after
consumption of certain wild plants. Nevertheless, whereas the rich indigenous
knowledge on the medicinal use of wild plants has been relatively well documented,
research, particularly concerning the socio-economic, cultural, traditional, and
nutritional aspects of wild-food plants still lacks adequate attention.
The consumption of wild-food plants seems to be one of the important local
survival strategies and appears to have intensified due to the repeated climatic shocks
hampering agricultural production and leading to food shortages. Increased
consumption of wild-foods enables people to cope better with erratic, untimely rains
and drought for several consecutive years without facing severe food shortages,
famine and general asset depletion.
PROSOPIS CINERARIA
Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce is a tree of the hot arid areas with capacity to grow in
areas of rainfall ranging from 100 to 600 mm.. This forms lifeline for the rural poor
living in the extreme arid region of Rajasthan State in India and is one of the most
important tree species for the agro-forestry systems in that region. P. cineraria holds
an important place in the economy of Indian arid zone and is known as the ‘King tree
of Indian Desert’.
Pods
The pods, locally known as Sangari, are used as fodder for livestock before
they ripe; they are rich in sweetish farinaceous pulp, which is consumed as food. The
pods are eaten green or dried after boiling and serve as green and dry vegetable for
rural masses. It is one of the constituents of famous dry curry ‘Panchkuta’. The wet
curry of these pods with bajra or gram flour is most famous. The preservation capacity
of these pods is very high. A lot of local proverbs, couplets and literature are available
to prove the importance of these pods.
After ripening these pods become sweetish and the pulp is sweeter with pale
brown colour. These pods then known as khoka and are considered as Marwari Mewa
i.e. dry fruit of arid zone. These are even fed to milch animals for increasing milk
production. The dry pods reduce the quest of water in summer months and generally
farmers eat in dry periods. The boiled dry pods after frying in sweet oil are sprinkled
with salt and red chilies and are used for entertaining the guests. Panchkuta has made
its place in menus of most of five star hotels and with increasing tourism demand for
it is likely to increase.

Nutritive value of Prosopis cineraria pods (sangri)
Pods have a sweetish pulp, are brown to chocolate in colour on ripening, hang
in cluster upto 12 from the tree, each containing several seeds embedded in a dry
yellow pulp which contains sucrose (13.16%), protein (9-15%) (Anon, 1994). Various
constituents of the khejri pods are shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Constituents of Khejri pods (Beri et al., 1982)
Constituents Proportion
Protein 53.4%
Starch 3.92%
Carbohydrates 9.37%
Ash 11.72%
Acid insoluble ash 0.35%
Tannins 7.23%
Non tannins 27.57%
Fruit/pod production in Prosopis cineraria
An unlopped Khejri tree with well spread crown cover (30-50 yrs old)
produces 5 kg of air-dried pods in normal year of rainfall. Young and unlopped trees
of 20-30 year age group yield 2-3 kg/tree of pod (Muthana, 1980). Ripe fruit locally
called as Khoka are available during May-June. From a well-grown tree (average
height 6.68 m, average dbh 30 cm) nearly 2.8 kg pods can be obtained annually (Kaul et
al., 1964). Average production of pods from a tree in the Shekhawati region of
Rajasthan is 20 to 25 kg (Malhotra et al., 1985).
A study was carried out in the year 2000-2001 in the Chipiya Nada village of
Johdpur district to workout economics of various products obtained from Prosopis
cineraria trees. The study area was 4 ha having trees of different ages with density of 12-
15 trees per ha. The findings are given in Table 2.
Table 2. Various produces of P. cineraria, their yield and economic value
Products Average
yield/tree (kg)
Total yield
(kg)
Rates/kg
(Rs.)
Total Value
(Rs.)
Fodder 10 500 3 1500.00
Fuel wood (Twigs of
lopped tree)
2.500 125 0.40 50.00
Dry Pods 0.500 25 60 1500.00

Another study in the same village on an open grown P. cineraria tree of 60 years
of age having large crown showed that tree will fetch about Rs. 1032/tree to the farmers
from its various components if the tree is not lopped every year. The details are given in
Table 3.
Table 3. Economic analysis of various components of a P. cineraria tree
Products Quantity Rates Value in Rs.
Fodder 60-75 kg Rs. 3/kg 180.00
Fuel wood (Twigs of lopped
tree)
80 kg Rs. 0.40/kg 32.00
Pods 5-6 kg Rs. 60/kg 300.00
Total wood (Wet) 8 quintal Rs. 60-70/quintal 520.00
The trend of market prices of dried fruit, called Sangari, in Jodhpur during
1996-2000 is given in Table 4.
Table 4. Market Prices of Sangri
Years Buying prices (Rs./kg) Selling prices (Rs./kg)
Dry Wet Dry W
et
1996 40.00 5.00 48.00 6.00
1997 43.00 5.00 50.00 6.00
1998 58.00 7.00 70.00 8.00
1999 55.00 6.00 58.00 7.00
2000 55.00 8.00 60.00 9.00
CAPPARIS DECIDUA
The Kair (Capparis decidua) is a densely branching shrub or small tree found growing
naturally in arid and semi-arid areas of India. The shrubs of Capparis decidua hold an
economics importance in desert area to enhance rural economy. The wood of the tree is
uses for firewood, manufacturing of craft items, in medicinal industries etc. The plant is
natural, drought hardy and good soil binder. It is mostly found on the boundaries of the
field.
Pods
The unripe fruits of kair are an important food item. Women and children pick
the unripe fruits as a supplementary activity while grazing animals and use them as

vegetable after processing. Dried fruits are important constituent of Panchkuta. The
fruits of C. decidua play an important role in rural economy, as it is main products for
delicious food value. Large-scale collection of kair fruits is done for domestic
consumption as vegetable or preparation of pickles and also for marketing. The kair
fruits are collected in the month of April-May.
Nutritive value of Capparis decidua fruits (kair)
Fruit is of high nutritional value. The edible fruits are rich in protein and
minerals and have a high seed fat content. Seeds contain approximately 20% oil, 1.7%
sugar and 8.6% protein. Kair was found to be rich source of beta-carotene. Various
constituents of the kair fruits are shown in table 5.
Table 5. Constituents of unripe kair fruits (Chauhan et al., 1986)
Constituents Proportion
Moisture 28%
Crude protein 14.8%
Ether extract 7.4%
Crude fibre 53.412.3%%
Ash 3.92%5.9%
Digestible carbohydrate 59.4%
Ascorbic acid 120.7 mg/100g
Beta carotene 5.4 mg/100g
Phosphorous 179 mg/100g
Calcium 90 mg/100g
Production in C. decidua
The production of Kair fruits is approximated to be 2 kg /plant (Malhotra et al.
1985). The market trend regarding prices of fruits of C. decidua in Jodhpur during 1996-
2000 is shown in Table 6.
Table 6. Market Prices of Fruit of C. decidua
Years Buying prices (Rs./kg) Selling prices (Rs./kg)
1996 10 – 12 80 – 100
1997 10 – 13 90 – 100
1998 15 – 18 100 – 140
1999 14 – 16 90 – 120

2000 18 – 20 100 – 125
ACACIA SENEGAL
Kumat (Acacia senegal Wild) is a small thorny, deciduous tree with yellowish white
bark and feathery crown, reaching a height of 4-6 m and girth of 30-60 cm, native to
sudan, found occurring thoughtout India particularly in Haryana, Gujarat, and dry rocky
hills of Rajasthan. The tree is extremely hardy and drought resistant. It is also a
multipurpose tree species in desert area. The multipurpose uses of tree is for fodder, fuel
wood, gum production and food value in desert.
Pods
The seeds of A. Senegal are dried and preserved for human consumption as a
vegetable (Sen & Bansal, 1979; Nat. acad. Sci., 1980; Teel, 1985). In Rajasthan dry
seeds are main component of Panchkuta, a delicacy of hot desert containing fruits of
Acacia Senegal, Capparis deciduas, Prosopis cineraria and Cucumis sativa and root of
Nelumbium species (Sharma & Tyagi, 1979).
Nutritive value of Acacia Senegal seeds (kumat)
It contains crude protein 38.89%, has high ether extract, crude fiber and ash
levels. It is a good source of Ca, P and K, but low level of Na (Duke, 1992). The
information on some of the components in the fruits and seeds of kumat is given in Table
7.
Table 7. Constituents of kumat fruits and seeds (Duke, 1992)
Components Fruit Seed
Ash 7.1% 5.8%
Carbohydrates 69.9% 49.1%
Fat 1.0% 5.8%
Fibre 39.0% 13.7%
Phosphorus - 3,100 ppm
Production in Acacia senegal
The pods are harvested in the month of May – June for collection of seeds
locally known as kumatia. The production of seeds from each tree is approximated to
be 2 to 5 kg. Generally the farmers are using it for domestic purpose (Malhotra et al.
1985).
The market prices of dried seeds of A. senegal (Kumat) in Jodhpur, during 1996-
2000, are summarised Table 8.

Table 8. Market Prices of Kumat
Years Buying prices (Rs./kg) Selling prices (Rs./kg)
Green pod Dried seed Green pod Dried seed
1996 3 – 4 8 – 10 4 – 5 10 –12
1997 3 – 5 8 – 10 4 – 6 10 –12
1998 4 – 7 10 – 12 6 – 8 16 – 18
1999 5 – 7 8 – 10 7 – 8 12 – 14
2000 7 – 8 10 – 12 8 –10 15 – 20
ORGANIC CERTIFICATION
Organic certification is required to sell produce as organic. Followings are some of the
important points to be observed for organic certification:
oThe farm needs to complete a conversion period before products can be sold
as organic.
oPerennial crops can be sold as organic after 36 months.
oChemical fertilizers are not allowed. Manures and natural fertilizers also shall
not come from intensive animal husbandry. Microbial fertilizers, biodynamic
preparations and botanical preparations are allowed.
oChemical pesticides are not allowed. Bio-pesticides and most plant-based
products are allowed.
oBuffer zones are necessary to avoid spray drift from neighbouring fields.
The Indian Standards fixed for wild collections are:
The Indian Standards fixed for wild collections are:
o
oThe wild collection must be derived from a sustainable and stable growing
The wild collection must be derived from a sustainable and stable growing
environment.
environment.
o
oHarvesting or gathering shall not exceed the sustainable yield of the
Harvesting or gathering shall not exceed the sustainable yield of the
ecosystem/ threaten the existence of plant or animal species.
ecosystem/ threaten the existence of plant or animal species.
oThe collection area must be clearly defined, not exposed to prohibited
substances and can be subject to inspection.
oShall be at an appropriate distance from conventional farming areas,
conventional farming areas,
Pollution, Conventional areas
Pollution, Conventional areas.

FUTURE RESEARCH NEEDS
Sample survey in species occurring zones should be done for updating and
cross validation of data.
Based on the existing information of distribution, production and market
rates, economics of the various produces should be worked out.
Information about existing markets and marketing network for various
products should be explored for possible linkage to help farmers.
Studies on long-term storage and shelf life of the products should be taken up.
Nutritional value of sangri, kair and kumat for human and livestock health
needs to be examined.
Work on value addition (like health food, pickles from kair fruits, fiber
content in sangri, potential of panchkuta etc.) should be taken up on priority.
Studies on policy intervention and quality control etc. are required.
Certification of organically produced materials is another area where lot of
work needs to be done especially on food from wild plants.
SUGGESTION
Use of sangri, kair and kumat is well known since ancient times but there is need to
emphasize how rural economy can be improved through these produces. What should
be the marketing strategies, steps required for organic certification to step-up in global
marketing of these produces? We have to concentrate on value added products to
make these produces more economical and saleable.

REFERENCES
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Dehradun.
Beri R.M., P.C. Dobhal and K.S. Ayyar (1982). Chemical examination of the seeds of
Prosopis cineraria, Indian Forester 108(10): 669-672.
Chauhan B.M., A. Duhan and C.M. Bhat (1986). Nutritional value of ker ( Capparis
decidua) fruit. Journal of food science & technology 23: 106-108.
Duke J.A. (1992). Handbook of Phytochemical Constituents of GRAS, Herbs and
Other Economic Plants. CRC Press, NW, Boca Raton, FL. Pp 654.
Kaul R.N., R.P. Goswami and B.K. Chitnis (1964). Growth attributes for predicting
pod and seed yield of Prosopis spicigera. Science and Culture 30: 682-685.
Malhotra S.P., H.S. Trivedi and Y.N. Mathur (1985). Agro-forestry: A judicious use
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National Academy of Science (1980). Firewood crops. National Academy of Science,
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Sen D.N. and R.P. Bansal (1979). Food Plant Resources of the Indian Desert, In: Arid
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Teel W. (1985). A pocket Directory of trees and seeds in Kenya. Nairobi, Kenya.