A former catering student in Ghana is rejecting the industry’s focus on Western cuisine to instead promote traditional, locally grown food as both nutritious and sustainable. After training in French, Italian, and Mexican dishes at a technical university, he found the curriculum failed to reflect the homegrown staples of his upbringing. Frustrated by the disconnect, he now advocates for a shift toward climate-resilient, indigenous produce as part of a broader grassroots effort. His story highlights a growing movement questioning Ghana’s reliance on imported food systems in favor of preserving cultural and agricultural heritage.
In Ghana, a grassroots movement is championing nutritious, homegrown, climate-resilient produce, rather than western importsAfter three years at catering school, Abiro Wisdom was certain of one thing – he did not want to go into catering. At least not the route that he might be expected to take. His course at Accra Technical University had prepared students for working in international hotels, focusing on French, Italian and Mexican cuisine. The nutritious, homegrown food that Wisdom had eaten while growing up in Bolgatanga, northern Ghana, did not feature at all.“I didn’t see myself there,” he says of the big chain hotels. “I felt I wouldn’t be myself working there – I wouldn’t be able to talk about the food from where I come from.” Continue reading...
