Editorial: This Is What We Can Learn From African American Plant-Based Food Traditions

Though veganism is not generally associated with Black Americans, we traditionally ate primarily plant-based diets. This type of eating was born out of necessity. Up until fairly recently, meat was an expensive luxury that was used in small quantities or for special occasions. The African American story in the United States begins with slavery in the Deep South, where Black people subsisted on farming and rations that included produce, grains, and a small portion of undesirable cuts of meat. Working with traditional methods of frying, drying, pickling, and seasoning, Black Americans worked with what little they had to create a unique African American food culture. After emancipation, these food traditions continued to blossom and evolve and eventually morphing into the soul food cuisine that populated the country during the Great Migration.

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