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Met Ua 527 Carlos Ardila Food Voice
Met Ua 527 Carlos Ardila Food Voice
CARLOS ARDILA
FOOD VOICE
I grew up in a middle class home. My parents originally from Teruel - Huila, Colombia,
during the last 40 years have moved throughout the state due to their jobs. They settled
in Rivera, Huila, my father, whose family owned cow farms, was a bank manager and
my mother was an elementary school teacher. First years in Rivera flash through my
mind, Rivera is a little town located in the center of the department near the mountains
and 20 kilometers far from the capital Neiva. The first flavors and smells that come to
my mind are those of sancocho soup. 30 years ago, was very usual that peasants
inviting the bank manager to their farm, it was a way of gratitude for his bank assistance
in their purpose of growing domestic crops. Weekends were fun, families enjoyed the
soup which contains among other ingredients: chicken, meat, potato, banana,
coriander, onion, and ahuyama - a kind of pumpkin, but salty. After visiting many
peasant farms, dad bought a farm. The farm was situated near mountains, 30 minutes
far from Rivera. Although my father had no experience, mom and dad had become the
hosts of family gatherings on weekends. Aunts, uncles, cousins came to the farm to
enjoy a good plate of “sancocho”. As soon as my father built the farm house, my mother
began to grow an organic garden. While I was playing with cousins, my mother picked
up some onions, tomatoes, and coriander from her garden. I was a desirous observer.
Rural aromas, especially of garlic, onion, chicken, and tomatoes, made us hungry.
Many of the ingredients to prepare the weekend family sancocho were collected from
the farm's organic garden. That was probably my first contact with organic food. At ten
years old, my parents moved to Neiva, the capital of the department of Huila. Forced to
buy a new house, they had to sell the farm. Saturday was the official market day in
Neiva. My parents took me to the central gallery for breakfast. Central gallery offered
fresh fruits and vegetables, but the smell of fish was so strong that it forced visitors to
take a walk around. Although chicken, meat and fish, made a strong smell, especially in
that site, we knew that would not dissipate over time. I remember only one smell so
awful, the smell of dried fish that it prevented me from even approaching it. Despite the
fact that most of the dweller visited it weekly, the disorder was evident and I could never
had breakfast there. I also remember when the first Asian restaurant was inaugurated in
the city; two of the most important and delicious options in the menu, were the Chinese
rice and the chop suey. That was my first contact with Asian Food, and I think I fell in
I moved to Downtown Neiva in 2000, and my unadventurous routine were shaken up.
Alone in an apartment for the first time in my life, I heard young voices at the door, were
my cousins, they were ready to party in The San Pedro festival, which take place every
June in the city. While people enjoyed parades, families gathering at their houses to
prepare pork “asado”, seasoned with thyme, bay leaf, salt, garlic, onion, oregano, and
beer; roasted for half an hour over high heat, and served with arepas or tortillas.
On account of its varied agricultural production and the confluence of cultures, Huila's
gastronomy is abundant and diverse. The recipes, which have been extending through
many generations are part of the cultural identity of the state and attract tourists. The
most representative food are: Biscuits from achiras, arepas, tamal, masato, asado,
I miss my childhood. I miss mom's rural organic garden. In the city where I have lived for
more than 25 years is unusual to see an urban farm garden. Owing to the arrival of
large supermarkets, consumers prefer to buy products from them and not from farmers
who grow organic food. More than 15 years ago, farmers have been faced a crisis
caused by the importation of fruits and vegetables, this crisis has increased due to the
pandemic, but the government have tried to incentivize community to buy local
products. However, social distancing and confinement measures to limit the spread of
the virus have reduced people's incomes and, consequently, local and national demand
for food.
As a vital part of the chain, we are having a unique opportunity to adopt measures to
promote healthier diets, and strengthen collaboration among the public-health and
agriculture sectors. But making the changes necessary to fix the problems requires a
fundamental shift in attitude. If we want to improve our food system, we need to know