Patterns of use of wild food plants by Brazilian local communities: systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review and meta-analysis sought to investigate the patterns of use of native wild food plants of Brazil (native and non-cultivated). METHODS: We searched ethnobiological works with food plants in Web of Science, Scielo, Scopus and PubMed using different sets of keywords. Initially, the studies were evaluated based on inclusion criteria (systematic data collection instruments, such as interviews; specification of methods for data collection; and the presence of a species list). The methodological quality of each study was evaluated to define the risk of bias. A total of 20 articles met all criteria and were included in the review. RESULTS: The results showed that there was a predominance of consumption of fruits, followed by leaves and seeds, which together represented 85.8% of the total parts. As for the meta-analysis, there was a predominance of use of plant parts classified as reproductive, non-persistent, non-destructive and parts of woody plants. There was no interference from the type of ecosystem (seasonally dry x moist). The results did not support the seasonality hypothesis. CONCLUSIONS: The concentration of studies in the Northeast, Southeast and South regions of Brazil and in the Atlantic Forest and Caatinga biomes points to the need for a greater effort in terms of quantitative ethnobotanical research in other regions and biomes. The predominance of fruits and plant parts classified as reproductive, non-persistent and non-destructive points to the high potential for implementation of sustainable management strategies aimed at these plants in the country.

Wild food plants of Brazil: a theoretical approach to non-random selection.

Ethnobiological investigations have focused on identifying factors that interfere with the criteria adopted for selection of plants, especially medicinal plants, by different populations, confirming the theory that plant selection is not random. However, regarding wild food plants, little effort has been made to confirm the theory in this context, especially in Brazil. Therefore, this systematic review aimed to contribute to the establishment of theoretical bases of the non-random selection of wild food plants by local populations in Brazil. For this, searches were made in 4 databases, namely, Web of Science, Scielo, Scopus and PubMed, using 8 sets of keywords in English and Portuguese in order to identify wild food plants occurring in Brazil. The steps were: application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, screening of articles, selection of studies based on risk of bias, data treatment and, finally, data analysis. Eighty articles met the inclusion criteria of this review. However, 45 of them were considered to present high risk of bias and thus 35 articles were kept for the identification of overused and underused families. The results were inferred through two different approaches (IDM and Bayesian). Annonaceae, Arecaceae, Basellaceae, Cactaceae, Capparaceae, Caryocaraceae, Myrtaceae, Passifloraceae, Rhamnaceae, Rosaceae, Sapotaceae, Talinaceae, and Typhaceae were considered overused. Eriocaulaceae, Orchidaceae, and Poaceae were considered underused. Therefore, considering that some families are more (or less) used than others, we confirm that the wild food plants occurring in Brazil, known and used by different populations, are not chosen at random.

Local knowledge as a tool for prospecting wild food plants: experiences in northeastern Brazil.

This study aims to provide a simple framework to identify wild food plants with potential for popularization based on local knowledge and perception. To this end, we also characterized the distribution of this knowledge in the socio-ecological system. We developed the study in the rural settlement Dom Hélder Câmara in northeastern Brazil. The species with the greatest potential for popularization considering the attributes accessed from local knowledge and perception were Psidium guineense Sw., Genipa americana L., Xanthosoma sagittifolium (L.) Schott and Dioscorea trifida L.f. However, the high variation in local knowledge on wild food plants suggests that species that are not frequently cited can also be promising. The absence of age or gender-related knowledge patterns indicates that studies for prospecting wild food plants in similar socioecological contexts need to reach the population as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific group.