| Abstract: |
This dissertation examines the gender issues in wild food use, and procurement as well as knowledge and attitudes toward wild food. The study was done in one rural village in Khon Kaen, a province in northeastern Thailand, from August 1994 to August 1995. The study village was selected by using the rapid rural appraisal method. Household samples were studied by quantitative and qualitative methods. Knowledge of and attitudes toward wild food were examined in adults and school children. The results indicate that there are differences in use and procurement of wild food between village men and women. Women obtain most of the plants, small water animals, insects, and red ants' eggs and men do most of the deep water fishing and wild animal hunting. The main reasons they gathered wild food were because: (1) they needed to obtain food
(2) they didn't want to spend money on food
and (3) they thought wild food was tasty. Wild foods are important in the village as a necessary component of diet. They increase variety in the diet, provide income, and help create social relations. Women, the gatekeepers who control the use of wild food in the families, usually make decisions concerning what to cook and how to use the wild food. In the knowledge and attitude test, women were more likely to identify plants, insects, and fish correctly than men, however, there was no significant difference in knowledge scores. There were significant differences in the plant knowledge scores between different ages and the old have higher knowledge scores than the young. Adults had more knowledge of wild food than children. Most villagers considered wild food as important
ninety percent of the subjects reported they like wild food more than cultivated food. The villagers indicated that they want to maintain wild food species for the next generations and they transplant many species of wild plants to their gardens. The results show that wild food knowledge is being lost in the young villagers and many wild food species are decreasing in availability. Recommendations for the preservation and conservation of resources are proposed.
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