Food comsuption by Paresí ethnicity, Mato Grosso State: from beiju with fish to softdrink with chicken pastry

Abstract

Among the human activities of subsistence, foraging, implies the combination of collecting plants with fishing activities, hunting and farming practices. In traditional societies, collecting fruits and hunting are part of everyday life, common activities among the indigenous peoples of Brazil. The Paresí people are among the 896.917 thousand Brazilian Indians, inhabiting the Midwest region of the country. The survey took place in some villages of the Indigenous Lands of Paresí people, located at the municipalities of Tangará da Serra and Rosário D' Oeste, Mato Grosso State. The objective was to observe what foods were consumed, the way of collecting and traditional aspects. We used a qualitative approach, participant observation and visits to production sites and obtaining food. The main strategy of obtaining the food is the practice of the burning/shafting cultivation mainly cassava, associated with fruit collection activity, hunting and fishing. The cerrado works as their source of fruits such as mangaba e pequi, and contributes in obtaining protein (meat). Processed foods such as oil, soft drinks, rice, beans and beef and chicken meat, is also part of the diet of indigenous surveyed. Studies on the diet of indigenous peoples are required to observe what are the effects caused by the change in eating habits, associated diseases and fragmentation of the natural environment.