Wattles whittle hunger

Trees are seen increasingly as a means of stabilizing soils through reforestation and of providing fuelwood and fodder but most have not been seen as a means of improving human nutrition directly. However the knowledge that Australian Aborigines, living a traditional lifestyle, use wattle seeds and pods as a staple food led Australian aid workers in Niger to conduct an experiment. Australian wattles (acacias) had already been supplied in large numbers to many of the countries of the Sahel by the Seeds of Australian Trees (SAT) Project, funded by the Australian International Development Assistance Bureau (AIDAB). The seeds of Acacia holosericea, which grows locally were collected. They have a high protein content (17-25%) and can be eaten cooked or raw. The seeds were roasted or boiled and either served on their own or mixed with other grains and pulses and were regarded as highly palatable. Another wattle species already widely planted in arid West A: rice and adapted to the dry tropics is Acacia tumida which Aborigines also use as a food source. Australian Revegetation Corporation Ltd 42 Sarich Court Osborne Park 6017, WESTERN AUSTRALIATrees are seen increasingly as a means of stabilizing soils through reforestation and of providing fuelwood and fodder but most have not been seen as a means of improving human nutrition directly. However the knowledge that Australian Aborigines,..