Eurasianet correspondent Michael Igoe's superb recent report about the environmental dangers faced by Kyrgyzstan's Arslanbob area, home to the largest natural-growth walnut forest in the world, left me wanting to hear more about the forest and local culinary customs that revolve around what it produces. I was finally able to track the author, who tends to spend lots of time in areas without internet access, down and got him to answer some questions about his story and the Arslanbob forest. Our exchange is below:
How did you come upon this story?
The idea of a massive walnut forest in Kyrgyzstan was something that intrigued me from the time that I first heard about it. And the fact that it is an ancient source of walnuts that made their way as far as Rome contributed to my fascination with Central Asia's role as progenitor and pathway of ancient products and ideas. The forest has this sort of iconic status in the region, linking people to their physical surroundings and history in a way that seems increasingly rare today. In Kyrgyzstan the forces of change and disruption are ubiquitous, so I became interested in the way that those forces must be colliding with this almost mythical remnant of a pristine earth. Visiting Arslanbob twice confirmed this speculation.What role would you say walnuts harvested in the forest (and other edible things found there) play in the local food culture?