Food Studies Matter, Meaning, Movement Case Food in Samoa, Garrett Hillyer

CASE FOOD IN GARRETT BACK TO THE FUTURE FOR SAMOAN FOOD Garrett is a doctoral candidate in Pacific Islands tory and a Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellow in language at the University i at . His dissertation takes an ethnographic historical approach to , exploring the role within the Fa , or Samoan way of life , and shapes and is shaped by the Fa over time . Note that in this text , the word Samoan is written without a over the a ( a ) This follows Samoan linguist expertise , which notes that Samoan is not a Samoan word , but an English word , and English does not use . The Samoan word would either be , or , meaning Samoan language or of , respectively . GARRETT 131

Learning Outcomes After reading and discussing this text , students should be able to Identify common contemporary dietary crises in and draw connections to food history in the region . Articulate the central role of food in Samoan culture ( and other Indigenous cultures , more broadly ) Describe the complications of looking to food pasts to solve food problems in the present . INTRODUCTION Like many island nations and territories in , the two of ( the Independent State of and the territory of American ) are undergoing a serious health crisis . Problematic conditions linked to dietary habits are ing in increased hospitalizations , surgeries , and even deaths . These conditions include type diabetes , hypertension , and , among others . 132 FOOD IN

( I ) I ac ! AMERICAN . Page Page Australian Figure The Samoan archipelago , with the Independent State of ( or simply ' to the west and American to the east . Map reproduced with the permission of Services Scholarly Information Services The Australian National University . During my time conducting food research throughout the , which included years of participant observation , I noticed that imported processed foods were heavily featured in contemporary daily diets . While living with a host family on the island of in the Independent State of , not a day went by that we didnt eat hot dogs , instant ramen , white bread , or canned corned beef , which were generally accompanied by soda or other sugary drinks and juices . We also frequently ate ancestral foods , or foods produced , procured , and eaten long before outsider arrival in . These included foods like baked taro , breadfruit , and yams , or starchy varieties of bananas stewed in coconut cream , along with locally caught fish or locally raised chickens and pigs , and sometimes served with a glass of vai , which is a juice derived from a local citrus fruit . GARRETT 133

Figure Three Samoan meals during my time in . Breakfast of pancakes , koko ( cocoa rice , or rice cooked with cocoa ) and instant ramen of baked taro , fried chicken , fried turkey tails , and stewed chicken with bok choy dinner of hamburgers , chicken nuggets , and French fries . photo author ) In either case , when we ate , we ate a lot . My host family was obligated to take care of me , as a guest in their home , and this primarily centered on providing me with ample amounts of food . I once remarked to a friend in my village that I could barely finish my daily meals , to which he replied , Good . That means your family is taking care of As a Samoan , he knew that my host family would be highly regarded by their neighbors for their ability to host and to provide . Even without guests in the home , though , Samoan families still tend to eat large meals for similar reasons , because providing for ones children or parents is also a sign of familial respect , care , and love . This provision primarily comes in the form of food . Ensuring that one family has plenty to eat is an assurance that one is of service and utility to their family , and therefore in keeping with the Fa Samoan way of life . Though my research was more concerned with charting changes over time in Samoan than with contemporary dietary disease , the issue of health and wellness constantly came up when discussing my work with others . Whether talking with Samoan scholars at different universities and archival centers , or with my host family or my friends in the village , I tended to hear the same sentiment shared over and over again If only Samoans ate the foods they used to eat , then dietary disease would go away entirely . However , the uncomfortable truth that some 134 FOOD IN

edged and many avoided remained Newer , imported foods are just too tasty , too ingrained into Samoan diets , and too deeply embedded into Samoan culture itself to cut out entirely . This chapter presents a historical overview of Samoan food and food culture , introducing readers to the roots of temporary health crisis . In so doing , it offers a window into a problem that is not unique to alone . However , while dietary disease is on the rise around the world , the unique place of food in many Indigenous cultures as a means of conveying notions of respect , love , and wealth means that many Indigenous peoples are eating more and more imported processed foods . In what follows , therefore , I also show how these new and imported foods are entangled with deeper notions of Samoan taste , making it all the more difficult to them from Samoan diets . Finally , I ask readers to consider whether a back to the future is , an approach in which Samoans return to eating ancestral foods really feasible . FOOD IN DEEP PAST When the peoples arrived in the Samoan archipelago around years ago , they came prepared . Having long since mastered the domestication of animals like dogs , chickens , and pigs , the cultivation of crops like coconut , taro , and breadfruit , and the development of cooking techniques like the earth oven , peoples successfully colonized the Samoan archipelago as well as other island groups in . GARRETT 135

, mu . ill ' 04 ) A . Figure The spread of the people , original settlers of many islands in , showing the Cultural Complex , or the development and spread of the culture . Map reproduced with the permission of Services Scholarly information Services The Australian National University As a distinct Samoan language and culture developed out of the first peoples , it eventually became predicated upon a matai , or chief , system . Daily life was paced by the will of matai who were obligated to look after the villages over which they held political influence . This meant , among other things , the production and procurement of food . Matai delegated land for cultivation , organized and regulated the procurement of fish and shellfish , and deemed when it was appropriate to kill and prepare more specialized foods , such as chickens and pigs . In turn , village members were obligated to pay food utes to their matai during important ceremonies and rituals , matai with prized food items like the heads of fish or loins of a pig . As population grew , Samoan society and the matai tem became even more stratified , and several different rankings 136 FOOD IN

developed . Some of these highly stratified rankings could be seen in food production , procurement , preparation , and service . For example , young men without matai titles were expected to carry out most of the production and procurement of food , such as minding plantations and catching fish . They were also the primary cooks , as Samoan cooking with an umu , or earth oven , is considered a laborious and dangerous job . Though some women held matai very titles , at vast majority of matai were men . As a result , women were primarily expected to raise families and maintain the of villages and homes , although they also had specific food duties , such as procuring shellfish from shallow coastal waters . Age roles developed , too . Generally speaking , younger men and women were responsible for more laborious tasks while older people , titled or not , were taken care of by their children and grandchildren . At regular intervals , peoples of all ranks came together for and celebrations to mark significant moments in time , such as weddings , funerals , birthdays , and victories in war , and large feasting always accompanied these events . The strength and dignity of a village was often derived from their ability to host traveling parties from other villages . Likewise , the strength and dignity of villages represented by traveling parties , or guests , was often derived from their ability to present food gifts and tributes to their hosts in return . In this sense , food was integral in establishing relationships between peoples and groups . As Samoan food culture developed , so too did Samoan tastes . Many oral traditions speak of lolo , or rich , fatty foods as being most prized . This is perhaps due to the fact that so much of Samoan food consisted of coconut cream , which is a rich , fatty substance that was often cooked with or served with baked taro , breadfruit , fish , and other staple foods . In fact , some of the elders I spoke with during my research told me that this is why GARRETT 137

the heads of fish or the loins of a pig are gifted to the ranking these pieces contain the most lolo . aw ii . Figure This image shows how pigs are to be divided and gifted to various members of a Samoan community , depending on their rank within that community It is said that the loin of a pig is gifted to the matai due to its lolo , or rich and fatty . Source Te ( Sir Peter Buck ) Samoan Material Culture , via the New Zealand Electronic Text Collection . This early period of Samoan food history was marked by intense labor . It is not easy to climb a coconut tree or to pull taro up from the root , not to mention moving the rocks necessary to form an umu . Even a seemingly easy task like picking shellfish off coastal rocks and coral still takes a significant amount of energy . This work of Samoan society for generations , but it also meant that peoples burned a cant number of calories to maintain steady diets . FOOD IN RECENT PAST Europeans first sighted in the century , but tact between Europeans and Samoans was very limited until 1830 , when missionaries from England began working to vert Samoans to Christianity . Around this same time , a global whaling industry boomed , which brought several , or Samoans , to Samoan shores , to refuel their ships , trade their 138 FOOD IN

cargo , or to settle permanently and profit from economy . As the Samoan economy boomed , European and American colonial interests peaked as colonial agents sought to profit from industries like whaling and copra . By 1900 , the Samoan archipelago was split into two halves , and without much voice given to Samoans themselves . Though this history of colonialism goes much deeper , it is important to note here that these early brought with them something that would change Samoan food goods . These included canned vegetables , fish ( especially salmon ) and beef , including the highly prized , or corned beef , so named because in its early canned form it resembled cans of pea soup . Given their scarcity , and especially their lolo , canned fish and meats became especially highly prized items in Samoan society . Where once a matai might have expected a certain cut of pig or piece of fish as a food tribute from their village or a traveling party , they eventually grew to expect imported foods . Still , throughout the nineteenth century , limited supply of canned goods , a small overall population , and the fact that most Samoans remained largely within ancestral subsistence economies , all prevented an exponential growth of food presence . By the century , however , a combination of factors changed this . Catastrophic natural disasters brought in food aid from countries like New Zealand , Australia , and the United States , including flour , yeast , rice , and sugar in great supply . This gave way to new foods like popo ( literally coconut bread ) or buns baked in coconut cream , and koko ( literally cocoa rice ) or rice cooked in hot cocoa . In addition , the world wars in the century meant more people , industry , and cash in economy , giving more Samoans exposure and access to foods . As with many island groups in , food items like SPAM became a bigger part of daily GARRETT 139

diets , and with more Samoans able to afford more foods , Samoan tables began looking more and more by the minute , While also retaining many ancestral foods like taro , coconut , and breadfruit . While restaurants , bars , bakeries , and grocery stores had existed in since the nineteenth century , they rapidly expanded through the and century . Before long , both Samoan had several eateries and groceries selling foods . For ple , the Independent State of boasts its own fast food restaurant , while the less populated American claims two , along with other fast food establishments like Carl and Pizza Hut . Figure The restaurant in , American ) which is one of two locations in the island territory of only about people . photo author ) 140 FOOD IN

FOOD IN PRESENT AND FUTURE While foods changed , Samoan cultural values surrounding food persisted . This is not to say that Samoan culture remained static , as it continued to change during the century , just as it had prior to European arrival in the islands . Rather , the ties between food , gifting , ceremony , respect , and provision remained a tenant of the Fa . As such , Samoans continued to place incredible value on providing prized lolo foods to family , friends , mum , and any other peoples with whom they wished to sustain positive relationships . At the same time , within families , ing one another with plenty to eat remained a crucial way to communicate love , respect , and care . Consider , too , that with ease of access comes a lack of activity . Where foods were once difficult to cultivate , catch , and cook , they are now readily able on grocery shelves , and with the transition of many from subsistence to sedentary lifestyles and work , less activity means fewer calories burned . Some food scholars have labeled this kind of change in food choices and activity levels as the nutrition We also need to consider the interplay of food and colonialism . While this subject is too complex to go into here , it should be noted that power dynamics between smaller island nations like and larger nations like New Zealand , Australia , and the United States often involve some degree of hegemony . In regard to food , this can mean the exportation of unhealthy foods into without correlating funding for the medical problems that inevitably arise from eating such foods . For example , the Independent State of tried to implement various bans on imports , including a recent ban on turkey tails , but they received pushback from wealthier nations who threatened to restrict their induction into the World Trade Organization , not to mention significant local uproar from Samoan people who love turkey tails lolo . With limited political recourse or external public GARRETT 141

health support , and widespread local demand for imported foods , both Samoan find themselves struggling to bat dietary disease . Craig Santos Perez , a scholar and poet , calls this kind of power dynamic , which he broadly defines as structural According to Perez , not only erodes food cultural edge and increases dependency on imported foods , but it also leads to chronic diseases linked to poor diet . This is certainly true of . In a recent documentary ( which forms the foundation for an assignment at the end of this chapter ) a Samoan doctor called type diabetes a tsunami in the Indeed , several recent studies show that both Samoan and several other ian territories and nations have some of the highest per capita cases of obesity , type diabetes , and other in the world . Later in the documentary , the same doctor states that when he was young , he ate mostly ancestral foods , whereas Samoan children today eat imported processed foods in bulk . Like many Samoans , the doctors opinion is that a return to ancestral foods will mitigate dietary diseases in the region . ever , is the answer that simple ?

Is removing imported foods from Samoan society and culture feasible ?

Considering that imported processed foods have been an integral part of Samoan food culture for over a century , and that gifting and eating in bulk is intertwined with Samoan cultural norms , it becomes much harder to grapple with the possibility of ridding Samoan culture of imported foods . In fact , many Samoans to making these changes are adopting and adapting Samoan means of improving public health . For example , Zumba classes and groups have become increasingly popular ways to stay active , and fruits and leafy green vegetables are being pushed by government and grassroots campaigns to try to convince Samoans to eat more healthfully . In this sense , the 142 FOOD IN

notion of returning to food past is complicated by the fact that innovative , contemporary public health practices are simultaneously promoted as the answer to the problems of food present . On the other hand , some farmers are attempting to grow a kind of slow food movement in , predicated on revitalizing ancestral agricultural practices and diets . This suggests that perhaps looking to the past can provide a path to a healthy and sustainable food future . On the other other hand , what does a back to the future approach mean for Samoans who feel that eating imported foods is the mark of a thriving people ?

And who are outsider tell Samoans that they can not eat the same foods that have given so much meaning to cultural exchanges for so long ?

This short text does not propose clear answers to the questions it poses . Perhaps , however , readers will now be interested to further engage with food studies in , and more broadly , to address things like food adoption and adaptation , the relationship between food and health , the of food and colonialism , and the complications of imported foods from Indigenous societies and cultures . The assignments following this chapter provide an opportunity to begin that engagement , and welcome all readers to begin discussing these serious issues with one another . Discussion Questions Given what you learned in this chapter about Samoan food culture , what is the role of food in the cultures with which you are familiar ?

In what GARRETT 143 ways is Samoan food culture distinct from or similar to these food cultures ?

What are some of the ways that dietary disease can be linked to food culture ?

How can food ture help prevent dietary disease ?

What is the link between colonialism and dietary disease ?

In its concluding section , this chapter asks if the answer to ( and ) dietary disease crisis is taking a back to the future approach ?

What might be learned from looking at diets from the past ?

What might be learned from public health practices ?

Exercises Exploring Food in Print While it is not always possible to travel to Oceanic islands to speak directly with people to learn about the past and present of their food culture , much can be learned from materials housed in archives . Go to the National University of Australia TROVE tal archives and browse through issues of The Islands Monthly . While it is important to remember that this magazine was written for a audience , it contains advertisements and stories about food across . Click on the Browse this collection button , and then click on any of the that appear , while also scrolling or using the menu to see more recent issues . Once you select an issue , use the search tool to 144 FOOD IN

look for things like food , beef , taro , beer , cookies , or any other search term you can think of . Write a description of what you found in the issue you selected , considering the following questions What did you learn about food and food culture in nia ?

In the descriptions or stories about food that you read , what words or phrases stuck out for you ?

What did the images tell you about food culture in the region ?

How might the magazines audience be affected by the choice of food stories or advertisements in the issue ?

Exploring Food in Song Listen to the popular Samoan song Oka oka la hani and read the lyrics below as you listen . What kinds of foods does the song tell about , and how does the song use food symbolism ?

What might this tell you about changes in Samoan food culture that took place during the century ?

The song was written in the , and this version , performed by the Five Stars , is from the . GARRETT 145 Oka Oka la Hard La ' ou i Xe po ' a XE sill po ' a XE po ' a Sim mu ni pi lava ua le ! a tele ai le sau pepe le pepe a le ?

Tia , tia tofu le ta ! ete a SE ' sau me 52 sau ' Se Oh oh my honey My dearest honey Who I compare to a can of corned , Or the very best corned beef , Or some from , Or the very best Chop Suey , With the tomatoes and peas If it agreeable for you With the will of your heart We get married In accordance with the law For it wrong to just play around There is a devil That is an act of the evil And if you have a baby It will be a baby of the night a demon Dear , dear , goodbye We are parting ways But the distance isn too great Shout inland When you have the time Telephone me at some hour Or write a letter And send it to me by motorcar 146 FOOD IN

Exploring Food in Film Watch the documentary Diabetes Epidemic Part from Attitude , and write a to summary that reflects your understanding of contemporary health crisis . Drawing on what you learned in this chapter and in the film , offer your thoughts on potential solutions to this dietary tsunami in the Additional Resources Teaching a resource compiled by the University of i at Center for Pacific Islands Studies ( 2013 . Modern Cuisines The Globalization of Cuisines , in , Cuisine and Cooking in World . Berkeley University of California Press . Sharma , 2012 . Food and Empire , Pilcher , Oxford Handbook of Food . Oxford , UK Oxford University Press . On , see Craig Santos Perez , Facing Future Book Review Review 2013 ) GARRETT 147