Mexico: Conserving Oaxaca’s Food and Agriculture Heritage

This is a Food Sovereignty Tour [2] brought to you by Food First/the Institute for Food and Development Policy in partnership with Global Exchange Reality Tours.

The holidays are a special time to visit Oaxaca, especially to experience its renowned food culture. From elaborate moles to countless corn-based dishes; mezcal (a tequila-like spirit) to hot chocolate: food is in the spotlight. As part of our Food Sovereignty delegation to Oaxaca, you will have the opportunity to experience the Christmas holiday in Oaxaca, as well as the “Night of the Radishes,” a uniquely Oaxacan festival celebrating food, farming and creativity. On this tour, you will learn first-hand about the threats to rural livelihoods such as environmental degradation, out-migration and contamination of native seeds by imported GMOs. You will also learn how peasant organizations are working to strengthen local food systems, while playing an important role in the global food sovereignty movement.

This Food Sovereignty Tour builds on Food First’s 2007 delegation—documented in the film Caminos: The Immigrant’s Trail [3]—which retraced an immigrant’s journey from El Paso, Texas to Oaxaca, Mexico. You can view an excerpt of the film here [4].

As the cornerstone of Mesoamerican agriculture and diet, corn or “maize” has been at the heart of the ongoing struggle for food sovereignty in Southern Mexico, expressed in the battle cry “Sin maíz, no hay país!” (without corn, we have no country). The signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994 opened the floodgates to taxpayer-subsidized, industrially-produced corn imports from the United States, undercutting thousands of Mexican peasant producers. Despite attempts to prohibit the entry of genetically modified corn—a severe threat to the “center of origin” of maize cultivation—GM corn was soon found growing in peasant fields in Oaxaca’s Sierra Juarez. Peasants have been fighting back: “Without corn, we’re nothing. For that reason, we’re not going to let anyone disfigure corn, rob it of its essence” says Aldo González, a Zapotec farmer from the Union of Organizations of the Sierra Juarez (UNOSJO).

Ever since the Spanish conquest, Mesoamerican resistance has been rooted in an intimate knowledge of the natural environment and the management of diverse species of plants and animals. This knowledge allowed indigenous farmers to survive the colonial period, maintaining a degree of self-sufficiency and cultural autonomy. This history forms the basis of present-day food sovereignty struggles. On this Food Sovereignty Tour, you will learn about the cultural and historical context of food sovereignty struggles in Oaxaca; build solidarity with peasant communities and peoples’ organizations; and share delicious meals that embody Oaxaca’s history of resistance.