Ethiopian crops satisfy hunger for home

Through history, displaced peoples have re-created the foodways of their lost homelands in diaspora communities, starting with seeds or tubers that make it through the filters of distance and hardship.

There's besobila, sacred basil, an essential ingredient in the seasoning mix called berbere ("the backbone of the sauces"); gesho, a flavoring agent in tej (honey wine); and assorted culinary herbs and greens.

The leaves of the endod vine contain a chemical that kills the aquatic snails that spread bilharzia, a chronic disease widespread in developing countries.

Tamrat, 61, came to the United States in 1971 as a student, worked for IBM as a business manager, and became a full-time farmer after being laid off three years ago.

In addition to his home garden, he has a plot at the Sunol AgPark for the milder berbere peppers.

The land is leased from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and managed by Sustainable Agriculture Education, a Berkeley-based nonprofit.

Tamrat, who has no farming background, handles everything else there and in his garden: "It's part of my exercise regimen."

During the Mengistu regime (1974-91), teff exports were restricted and the grain could only be obtained in the black market, via neighboring Djibouti.

Other products for potential e-commerce include berbere and other spice mixes and, further down the road, seeds for home gardeners.