Grass Porridge

Ingredients:

• Wild grass seeds (such as wild sorghum)
• Water

Instructions:

1. Gathering the seeds: Collect wild grass seeds locally available. The seeds should be cleaned thoroughly to remove any impurities.
2. Grinding the seeds: Using simple tools like stones, grind the seeds to produce coarse flour or porridge.
3. Cooking: Add the ground seeds to a pot with water and cook on low heat until it becomes a thick porridge. Cooking time varies by grass type but typically lasts 20-30 minutes.
4. Serving: Grass porridge is consumed without any seasoning. In some cases, it can be mixed with other edible plants if available.

Grass porridge carries deep symbolic meaning, representing survival in extreme hunger, particularly in East African communities such as those in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. When food resources are scarce, and access to staple grains like maize or millet is cut off due to droughts, conflict, or corporate land grabs, people are forced to seek alternative food sources.

In desperate situations, communities turn to wild grass seeds, which are available in the natural environment. Though difficult to digest and nutritionally poor, these seeds can be ground and transformed into porridge that provides minimal energy.

Root Causes

The primary cause of this food crisis is the displacement of land by international corporations, which convert agricultural lands into large-scale farms for export crops like coffee, palm oil, and cotton. Climate change and prolonged droughts also devastate crops, exacerbating food shortages. Additionally, armed conflicts restrict farming and access to food resources.

Grass porridge thus becomes a symbol of survival in the harshest conditions, highlighting hunger and the injustice caused by economic activities that neglect the welfare of local communities.