Did food shape our history or history shape our diet? What role does climate play in the way we eat today? How did our food habits shape up? Read on to find out.

Kuku jumps from her bed the moment the doorbell rings. Today is her birthday and she is excitedly waiting to meet her friends in the evening. She opens the door and sees a delivery man carrying a big backpack. He smiles at Kuku and hands her a package. Kuku looks at it and screams, “Ma! Nanaji’s gift has arrived!”

Down To Earth travels to the desert state of Rajasthan to find out about the traditional food habits of the people in one of the driest regions of the country. We discovered that so many things grow in the wild and traditional knowledge of these will ensure that you have plenty to eat in the harsh desert environment. But is this traditional knowledge losing its ground slowly?.

Down to Earth is Science and Environment fortnightly published by the Society for Environmental Communication, New Delhi...

The key lies in education. We should expose children more to food systems, says nutrition consultant Rujuta Diwekar.

This is the age of hard sell: everything that is or can be on sale, is being sold aggressively through promotions, advertisements, media campaigns, claims of how good the product is, what health benefits it supposedly has, etc... and that also goes for the food that we eat. 

The beautiful and healthy lotus stems—you can find these stems being sold by roadside vendors, especially along roads that run by a river or a pond. The light brown or white, sausage-like tubular vegetable has holes in it. These are lotus stems and they are used widely in Indian, Chinese and Japanese cuisine. They are relished for their taste and nutritional value.

Known in Hindi as bhe or kamal kakri, the lotus stem contains hollow air channels that run the length of the stem. It is crunchy, sweet and tastes like water chestnut. It has a delicate flavour and is suitable for eating raw or cooked...