Gastronomic ethnobiology

Abstract

The inextricable link between biodiversity and cultural customs related to the holistic domain of food (gastronomy) represents the very foundation of the human experience and contributes in a variety of ways to the well-being of humans and their oikos . The study of the complex interactions between human societies, food, and their environment-what we defi ne here as gastronomic ethnobiology-is nowadays considered "the" crucial pillar for fostering food security and especially food sovereignty. This research area emerged from a broad range of studies encompassing, for example, those concerning folk categorization and uses of wild food plants and mushrooms, uses and management of neglected crops and local landraces, local bio-fermentative processing of food, as well as folk perceptions, uses, and management of animals/ethnoveterinary, nutritional transitions among migrant and diasporic groups, and bio-cultural interactions between foodscapes and terroirs.