Forest Products, Livelihoods and Conservation

Chapter 2

Dental hygiene and livelihoods:

a case of chewing sticks in Ghana

Dominic Blay^1

ABSTRACT

This chapter provides an overview of the chewing stick trade in Ghana. Chewing

sticks are one of the most important non-timber forest products of the Western

Region (Falconer 1990; Falconer 1992) and have provided the primary form of

dental care for millennia. The production, trading and marketing of chewing

sticks also provides the main source of income for many men and women in

rural communities, many of whom are economically marginal. The trade in

chewing sticks also contributes significantly to the local, regional and national

economies (Tabi-Gyansah 2001). However, as with other resources, the Garcinia

spp. exploited for chewing sticks are becoming increasingly scarce, particularly

outside of forest reserves (Wong 1997).

INTRODUCTION

The excellent condition of people’s teeth in West Africa is common knowledge

(Isawumi 1978). Many authors claim that chewing sticks, which many West

Africans (Isawumi 1978) and as many as 90% of the people of southern Ghana

utilise, are the major contributory factor for the good condition of people’s

teeth (Adu-Tutu et al. 1979; Abbiw 1990). Because of the long and widespread

use of chewing sticks in the region, there is a wide trade network, which

involves a large number of people, both from rural and urban settings. It is

estimated there is an average of 250 women in the two main markets in Kumasi

alone involved in processing of chewing sticks (Falconer 1992).

The contribution made by chewing sticks to the economy of the Ashanti

region of Ghana is estimated at around US$203,000 (Blay unpublished notes).

Thus, in addition to the provision of dental care, chewing sticks contribute to

Common names Part of the Management Degree of Scale of Geographic

resource used transformation trade range

Tweapeah, Stem Wild Low International Medium

Nsorkor

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