I wait for them all year long... The fruits grown by women in domestic gardens and their contributions to food and nutritional diversity in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina

Abstract

The current ways of life are signed by the insertion into a globalized world, loss of biodiversity, and growing food-nutritional insecurity. Different international organizations recommend promoting and intensifying local-family agriculture to reduce these problems. In Puerto Iguazú, women cultivate species of nutritional, medicinal, and emotional importance in their gardens. With this work, we contributed to the systematization of a harvest calendar of the 15 most frequent fruit trees in Iguazú, their nutritional potential was analyzed, and the contributions to the diet of the Household Units are described. To achieve this, an ethnographic work was carried out, and nutritional information was collected from a bibliographic review. The fruits are available throughout the year in Iguazú. The cultivation and consumption of fruit trees complement the daily requirements for a healthy diet. They bring vitamins (B complex, C, and K), minerals (Potassium and Manganese), fiber, water, and antioxidants to the diets. The importance of its cultivation relates to cultural and nutritional values and contributes to the autonomy strategies of the local population, addressing food security and sovereignty. They also reduce the economic burden on the basic food basket and promote the biocultural conservation of the Atlantic Forest.