A history of wheat finds the crop gaining popularity during the colonial era when white bread made from imported wheat was mostly consumed by wealthy foreigners.
‘Look at your plates when you eat. These imported grains of rice, corn, and millet—that is imperialism.’
— Thomas Sankara
The past couple of months have seen a lot of discussion in the media about the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on food security in Africa, highlighting the continent’s staggering agricultural trade deficit. Bringing this closer to home, a question that increasingly resonates concerning Nigeria’s high levels of wheat importation is, why do we eat what we eat? This article in Quartz made me recall a conversation I had with my uncle a few years ago, over a meal of ewedu and amala dudu (black amala made from yam flour), a staple food in Ibadan. My uncle explained that the predominant form of amala when he was growing up in rural Ibadan was amala lafun (white amala), a variation of the same meal made from cassava flour. In the past, amala dudu was mostly consumed by the small urban Ibadan population, due to yam's cultural relevance and high price marking it as a food for special occasions. As a result of increased rapid urbanization over the past decade, and higher supply of yam due to increased local production, amala dudu gradually displaced amala lafun as the predominant variation of amala consumed in Ibadan. Barring a quick google search I made during the conversation with my uncle, I have never seen this white amala my uncle spoke of.
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