Island of Papua Videos
West Papua

 

The Dani: Sweet potatoe cycle

In this clip, we follow the sophisticated process of sweet potato horticulture developed by the Dani. It follows the Dani sweet potato cycle from clearing off the old brush and weeds from a fallow field to planting, harvesting, cooking and eating. Sweet potatoes make up 90% of their diet. The Dani have dozens of different names for varieties of sweet-potatoes.

Pigs have been introduced by the British and have become a part of the ecological system, plowing up the soil in search of food and fertilizing it by their droppings.

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