Transformations and Diversity of Staple Foods: Linking Japan, Southeast Asia, and Africa through Comparison
As discussions about changes in rice consumption grow, this symposium reconsiders what we take for granted as “staple foods.” Bringing together perspectives from food science, cultural anthropology, area studies, and history, it explores how staple foods have changed and what they mean in different societies. In Japan, the value of grains such as brown rice and barley has been reassessed alongside white rice. In Southeast Asia and Africa, multiple staple foods—including rice, tubers, and sago—coexist, and their forms have shifted over time. Through regional comparison, the symposium asks what defines a staple food and how changes in staples shape everyday life and health. Open to all, it invites reflection on global diversity through everyday meals.
Details
●Date：2026/02/21(Sat) 14:00-16:30
●Venue：Online／303 : Large Conference Room, Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), Tokyo University of Foreign Studies（Hybrid meeting）
●Language：Japanese
●Admission：Free
●Pre-registration: required.
If you wish to participate, please register in advance via this form. The email you receive after registration will include the information for online participation. Registration deadline: until just before the event starts on Saturday, February 21, 2026.
●Contact：a-kawai[at]tufs.ac.jp（※Change [at] to @）
●Organized by：J-Peaks Research Project "Food Systems Transformation and Health: Cases on Rural Populations in Southeast Asia"; ILCAA (Interdisciplinary Research Team); TUFS Field Science Commons (TUFiSCo)
Program
| 14:00 - 14:05 | Opening Remarks | KAWAI, Aya(ILCAA) |
| 14:05 - 14:35 | Historical Transitions of Staple Foods in Japan and Nutritional Comparisons, and the Health Functions and Palatability of Barley | KOHYAMA, Noriko(National Agriculture and Food Research Organization) |
| 14:35 - 14:55 | Multiple Staple Foods under the Rice-Based Diet Shift: Preferences and Practices among the Sama-Bajau People of the Banggai Islands, Indonesia | NAKANO, Makibi(Konan Women's University) |
| 14:55 - 15:15 | Dietary Scenes in Sundanese Farming Community in Indonesia: From Surveys in 2015 and 2022 | KOSAKA, Satoko(Nagasaki University) |
| 15:15 - 15:35 | Diversity of African Staple Foods and Changes in their Ingredients: With Special Reference to Ethiopian Injera | ISHIKAWA, Hiroki(ILCAA) |
| 15:35 - 16:05 | Panel Discussion | |
| 16:05 - 16:25 | Q & A | |
| 16:25 - 16:30 | Closing Remarks | SHIOHARA, Asako(ILCAA) |