Shea butter is an important lipid material for food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries.
Most of the shea butter consumed in the world comes from Africa. The extraction protocol is …

How will archaeology contribute to agricultural sustainability? To address that question, this
overview reflects on the diverse and complementary ways that archaeology has advanced …

West African cuisine has long been known for its distinct ingredients and flavours, often
enhanced by the addition of a large and diverse range of plant foods. A traditional meal …

While narratives of the spread of agriculture are central to interpretation of African history,
hard evidence of past crops and cultivation practices are still few. This research aims at …

Abstract In West Africa, there is a disjuncture between historical processes in the second
millennium BC and late first millennium AD due to a comparative lack of archaeological …

Pollinator decline, driven primarily by habitat degradation, has the potential to reduce the
quantity and quality of pollinator-dependent crops produced across the world. Vitellaria …

Restoring degraded soils to support food production is a major challenge for West African
smallholders who have developed local innovations to counter further degradation. The …

This paper explores the evidence for beer production, consumption, and ritual use at
Kirikongo (100–1650 CE), a well-preserved archaeological site located in Mouhoun …

Many archaeological sites in the central West African savanna were either abandoned or
reduced in size between the 14th and 15th centuries CE. Explanations have tended to …

Despite major advances in archaeological coverage of West Africa over the past several
decades, interpretations remain hampered by the analytical bifurcation of the region's past …