Value-Added Yams: Elevating the Traditional Staple of the Chepang People

The Chepang community belong to the indigenous Tibeto-Burman group from south-central Nepal, inhabiting districts like Gorkha, Dhading, Makwanpur, and Chitwan. They have been living under dire circumstances, surviving on fishing, hunting, and gathering wild foods from the community forests.These days, they have started settling in villages where they stay in branch and mud shelters, but it is still very much in keeping with the nomadic lifestyle that they led. Most of their customs have been passed down from this nomadic past, as they continue to trap birds and collect forest products. One of the root and tuber crops that they collect is yam.

We are a team called “Yamnovators” from Kathmandu University working on a project for the Food system innovation challenge organized by Wageningen University and supported by Asian Development bank and Kathmandu University. Our team consists of interdisciplinary students from Biotechnology, Geomatics Engineering and Agriculture background. The Yamnovators aim to innovate the food system with a holistic approach of transforming the role of yam in the chepang community. This project goes beyond the traditional cultivation methods by reimagining yam as a catalyst for  economic growth and community empowerment simultaneously.

Yam has been vital to the sustenance of the Chepang people through harsh times. It has also formed an important part of their diet to help them survive during times when cultivated crops were not enough. They consume boiled yams as a vegetable or main meal. They also sell the yams to generate income. Whereas rice is increasingly seen by the Chepang as superior, yams are, in fact, more nutritious. A real source of vitamins, antioxidants, and phytoestrogens, there are many health benefits that come from these foods. Nutritionally speaking, yams and other traditional Chepang food are nutritionally more valuable than rice to address malnutrition among Chepang children. Though many believe that the Chepang people eat these traditional foods out of necessity, the fact remains that their dependence upon yams and other wild edibles for so long speaks volumes to the nutritional value of such foods, as well as to their cultural significance. Yams can provide many important vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. These tubers are rich in vitamins B1, B6, and C, as well as minerals such as manganese, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, and folate.

The high content of fiber in yams helps regulate the digestive process and promotes it for maintaining good health of the intestines. Since they have antioxidant properties, skin cells get rebuilt and oxidative damage decreases. Yams have potential  anti-inflammatory effects as well. Potassium and manganese keep the bone health functional and maintain blood pressure at a decent rate. The vitamin C present in yams promotes the synthesis of collagen, an essential factor for skin elasticity. Also, it was reported that yam has anti-cancerous properties too. Interestingly enough, there are 13 species of yams in Nepal, and the Chepang people utilize 10 species of the yam. Different species have different nutrient proportions and health benefits.

Value addition is basically an increase in economic value and utility of a product or service. Value addition to agricultural products would transform raw crops into more processed, finished goods that have more commercial value other than in their original, unprocessed state. Value addition of yam is an opportunity that firstly has a promising outlook for uplifting the Chepang community and for innovation in food systems.

In this way, processing of yams into value-added products can involve the Chepang in income-generating activities and uplift their livelihood. Examples of such value addition could include yam chips, pickles, and flour. Value addition, such as adding yam flour to staple foods like bread and noodles, could increase their nutritional value manifold and make them more appealing to health-conscious consumers, such as diabetic patients. Such knowledge of yams and traditional cultivation practices can put the Chepang in a better position to act as a supplier of yam-based products. In addition to offering extra sources of income to the Chepang through yam cultivation and processing, value addition has the potential to also create more opportunities within the market.

Our team had visited the Chepang community in Rakhsirang at Makwanpur District and purchased the two kind of yams from them: Halo tarul and tokaine tarul.Over the next month, the focus shifted to product development. Using both the cultivated and forest yam varieties, we explored creating a range of food products. Three innovative products emerged during this phase:

• Yam Chips – Prepared by testing different slicing thicknesses and dehydration techniques, we faced some challenges with oxidation but experimented with various pretreatments to overcome the issue.
• Yam Pickles – Three distinct pickle variants were created, combining traditional Chepang pickling methods with modern preservation techniques.
• Yam Flour – The flour was milled from dried yams and tested in baking applications. We created cookies using yam flour to diversify its use beyond savory dishes.

We took our products to the local farmers’ market, where we introduced the yam chips and pickles to a new group of potential consumers. Over two market sessions, we sold approximately 40-50 units and received direct feedback from buyers regarding the taste, texture, and price points. YamNovators organized workshops within the Chepang community to teach the people about yam’s potential beyond its traditional use. Through hands-on learning, we empowered them with new skills in processing yam into various products. This created excitement among the locals, who began seeing their crop in a new light, as a source of economic opportunity. Further, Women farmers are benefited from the intervention and there is an increase in their confidence level.

Export potentiality in Nepalese yam cannot be overlooked because it opens up new vistas for diversification in Nepal’s agricultural exports and brings more prosperity to the rural communities.  By working together with the Chepang community, we aim to empower the Chepang people—creating opportunities for them, preserving indigenous knowledge, and ensuring that future generations flourish in a self-reliant and resilient community. Our team has explored the possible market spaces and opportunities while creating a strong connection with the community, helping them open up to new possibilities of income generation opportunities- even becoming agri entrepreneurs themselves. Furthermore, by introducing nutritional food items to consumers, new economic opportunities for the Chepang community are created and the health benefits of this underutilized crop is promoted to a broader audience, transforming their consumption pattern to healthy alternatives.