The importance of a taste. A comparative study on wild food plant consumption in twenty-one local communities in Italy

A comparative food ethnobotanical study was carried out in twenty-one local communities in Italy, fourteen of which were located in Northern Italy, one in Central Italy, one in Sardinia, and four in Southern Italy. 549 informants were asked to name and describe food uses of wild botanicals they currently gather and consume. Data showed that gathering, processing and consuming wild food plants are still important activities in all the selected areas. A few botanicals were quoted and cited in multiple areas, demonstrating that there are ethnobotanical contact points among the various Italian regions (Asparagus acutifolius, Reichardia picroides, Cichorium intybus, Foeniculum vulgare, Sambucus nigra, Silene vulgaris, Taraxacum officinale, Urtica dioica, Sonchus and Valerianella spp.). One taxon (Borago officinalis) in particular was found to be among the most quoted taxa in both the Southern and the Northern Italian sites

Most quoted wild food botanical families in the Northern and Southern Italian study areas

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "The importance of a taste. A comparative study on wild food plant consumption in twenty-one local communities in Italy"</p><p>http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/3/1/22</p><p>Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 2007;3():22-22.</p><p>Published online 4 May 2007</p><p>PMCID:PMC1877798.</p><p></p

Correspondence analysis carried out on the food ethnobotanical uses of the fifteen most cited taxa among all the considered sites, after eliminating those botanical taxa that are not ecologically available in all study areas

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "The importance of a taste. A comparative study on wild food plant consumption in twenty-one local communities in Italy"</p><p>http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/3/1/22</p><p>Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 2007;3():22-22.</p><p>Published online 4 May 2007</p><p>PMCID:PMC1877798.</p><p></p

Representation of the five most quoted wild food taxa in Northern and Southern Italy (the name of the species that turned out to be among the most quoted in macro-regions is underlined)

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "The importance of a taste. A comparative study on wild food plant consumption in twenty-one local communities in Italy"</p><p>http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/3/1/22</p><p>Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 2007;3():22-22.</p><p>Published online 4 May 2007</p><p>PMCID:PMC1877798.</p><p></p

Correspondence analysis carried out on the food ethnobotanical uses of the fifteen most cited taxa among all the considered sites

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "The importance of a taste. A comparative study on wild food plant consumption in twenty-one local communities in Italy"</p><p>http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/3/1/22</p><p>Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 2007;3():22-22.</p><p>Published online 4 May 2007</p><p>PMCID:PMC1877798.</p><p></p