How Goats Define Food Sovereignty in East Africa And Beyond

“Nani mbuzi?”

“Nani ng’ombe?”

“Nani kuku?”

You’ll regularly hear a server yelling out in a local eatery in Kenya; a whacky way trying to identify who ordered goat meat, who ordered beef and who ordered chicken respectively.

Domesticated goats

Goats are ubiquitous all over East Africa in the urban and rural areas alike. In the urban areas they are considered a menace.  They roam about interfering in the human and vehicular traffic alike. They mingle with the humans in the market places scavenging for something to eat: a discarded cabbage; a fallen carrot stick, you get the idea…. They are like their human counterparts- survivors. Their owners let them loose in the morning to go forage for themselves and later at sun set find their way home.  The demand for goat meat is so high that everyone tries to get a piece of the pie by raising goats whatever way possible to make extra cash.  The problem is some of the people trying to raise goats in the urban areas have no idea how to do it.  Firstly, they are violating town bylaws by raising animals in the town or city without proper shelters and provisions. Second, there isn’t enough pasture in the city for the goats to graze on and thirdly; nobody seems to care for them. They just roam around foraging for themselves. But, when the holidays are approaching, suddenly the owners want to sell them at a much higher price to anyone who’s willing to pay.

My early encounter with goats was very early on when I was a child being raised by my grandparents; I remember when we go to the Boma - the fenced compound where we lived and where there were pens for the animals to spend the night - and there were lots of goats, sheep and cows coming back to the village every evening after a whole day out grazing. I remember when someone was pointing out to me to a huge cloud of dust from a distance and he would say that those were my grandfather’s goats coming home.  I remember not seeing anything but a huge cloud of dust, but I also remember hearing the goats’ bleating and their bleating, with the cows mooing became louder as they came closer to the Manyatta – the maasai boma. I hail from the Maasai community of Kenya. The Maasai are pastoralists. They still move around with their animals searching for pasture albeit with shrinking land now available for pasture and tightening government policies.  Besides, the lands that the Maasai occupy now are harsh arid and semi-arid lands that are not good for agriculture. I remember when I was young boy old enough to take the animals out to graze, I would head out with other older boys for a whole day and I remember enjoying the day out in the wild grazing the animals and learning things from the older boys on how to take care of the animals. That’s when you start noticing the difference in goats, sheep and cows. Not just on their sizes, but on how they graze and their behaviour towards each other and to humans.  The male ‘billy goats’ are bigger.  They stand out- with bigger horns and a tuff of beards under their chin. (That’s where the men’s goatee name comes from.) The other notable thing about billy goats is their unique musky odour and how they constantly get into head-butting fights with other goats. The baby goats are cutest things ever. They have these tiny faces, very friendly and they are always running around and jump on anything.

Goats grazing in an organic farm

Goats are very hardy animals and they are easy to raise if cared for well. They like grazing on shrubs as well as grass. I remember wondering how they were able to pick up the leaves from a thorny Acacia shrub and other shrubs while avoiding all the thorns. Because they feed on different herbs, shrubs and grass they don’t seem to get sick easily like sheep and cows that just feed on grass. This also gives their meat a unique flavour and texture that people seem to like a lot. Goats raised in the urban areas don’t have this unique flavour and that’s why people living in the cities would rather drive few hours out of the city to the Manyattas out in the country in Maasai land to enjoy true authentic goat meat. Goat milk is also a delicacy. Even though the goats raised by the Maasai are mostly for meat, they produce milk, albeit in small amounts.

  

The goat meat – chevon: A delicacy!

Goats are very important to the Maasai and any other communities that raise animals. Every part of the goat is used and the meat can be prepared in so many ways that seems to leave the people wanting more. The hide is usually stretched out on a frame to air-dry it. Once dried, it can be sold to the tannery to be turned into beautiful items. Different parts of the goat can be prepared differently. The ribs and the thighs are usually roasted over fire slowly. This is popularly known as nyama-choma or roasted meat, which can be eaten with any other dish. Most people prefer to eat the nyama-choma with ugali or sima – the popular corn meal. Others prefer it with sliced tomatoes, coriander onions and salt.  You can eat it whichever way you prefer and I can guarantee you that you will still enjoy it and you will be wanting more in a few days. The tripe once cleaned can be boiled then sautéed. The uncooked meat can be preserved by salting, made into strips and hanged to dry or can be smoked. Bones are boiled to make a stock also popularly known as Supu in Swahili. One can choose the drink Supu whichever way they like. Some prefer to add salt and some people prefer it just the way it is with nothing added. The Maasai usually boil some medicinal roots and bucks separately and mix the stock with the medicinal concoction and drink it that way. I remember how bitter it was and how my grandfather would encourage me to keep drinking until I was usually drenched in sweat.

Cooked chevon

Goats have been a great source of food security and sovereignty to many east African communities for millennia. They provide a source of protein, milk, hide and income. Their hardiness makes them even more suitable to the hot and dry climate and long droughts that east Africa sometimes go through. This ensures that families that usually depend on other activities like farming and rearing of other animals like cattle have something to rely on when all others fail.

For the Maasai and the east African communities living abroad the thought of the texture and flavours of goat meat at home brings about memories of good times with family and friends. So, every time we gather we get goat meat and prepare it like we do back home – roasting over fire- aka nyamachoma. The only problem is that the meat of goats raised on grains has a different texture and flavour than those raise on grass and herbs. But the sharing of the goat meat with few drinks and catching up with friends on the on goings in the home country overcomes the flavour and texture issues. The mention of goat meat to me means traditions, sharing and good times with family and friends. It brings about the smells of the Manyatta which I associate with my growing up and taking goats out to graze. I look back to my goat raising days with nostalgia.

Jeremiah Saringe, Guest Contributor, ECVOntario, SEDRD, University of Guelph