Heritage Diets: Africa’s Answer to the Mediterranean

by Oya Foods September 1, 2025

For years, the Mediterranean diet has dominated global conversations about healthy eating, praised for its balance of vegetables, legumes, grains, and oils. But new research is reshaping that narrative, revealing that Africa’s own heritage diets—particularly those rooted in rural Tanzania—are just as powerful in protecting health and strengthening immunity.

A recent study in the Kilimanjaro region looked at what happens when people shift between traditional diets and modern, Western-style eating. At the heart of this research were foods many of us know well: plantains, cassava, beans, millet, sorghum, and mbege, a fermented banana drink that has been part of local food culture for generations.

The study tracked 77 healthy men over a two-week period, testing three eating patterns:

a traditional African heritage diet,
a Western diet heavy in processed foods and meats,
and in some cases, the Western diet supplemented with mbege.

The results were striking. Participants who switched from the heritage diet to a Western one experienced a surge in inflammation, metabolic disruption, and weakened immunity, effects that lingered even after they returned to their usual meals. By contrast, those who stayed on the heritage diet, or simply added mbege to their routine, showed reduced inflammation and stronger metabolic health.

Researchers say these findings highlight not only the health benefits of traditional African foods, but also the urgency of protecting them. As urbanisation and global fast-food culture take hold, heritage diets risk being pushed aside—along with the cultural knowledge and biodiversity they represent. Preserving them, the study argues, is about more than nutrition; it is about identity, sustainability, and resilience.

At Oya Foods, this resonates deeply. For us, African heritage foods are not relics of the past, but living systems of nourishment that carry health, culture, and identity in every bite. They are naturally clean-label, plant-forward, and sustainable. They remind us that the answers to many of today’s health challenges are rooted in the wisdom our grandmothers carried into their kitchens.

Yet the research also sounds a warning: if we allow traditional diets to fade, we risk losing more than food—we risk losing a way of life that honours community, biodiversity, and balance with nature. That’s why Oya’s mission is to modernise and share these traditions in ways that fit today’s lifestyles while staying true to their roots. Celebrating African food culture, supporting women in the agri-value chain, and reducing food waste through dehydration are all part of that same story.

So, when the world talks about the Mediterranean diet, we invite you to look closer to home. Africa’s heritage diets hold just as much power to heal, sustain, and inspire.

Read the full article here: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/apr/17/mediterranean-diet-african-food-tanzania-heritage-traditional-healthy?utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=meddiet