Taro Day

Taro Day is a holiday celebrated in parts of Fiji on the first full moon of the month of May. It is named for the taro root, a staple in the local Fijian food economy.

The day is filled with events and traditions, many of which involve games played by Fijian children. One of these games is a race, in which the children roam an island competing with one another to plant the most corms. Often, children are encouraged to poop into the taro holes to help fertilize the corms. However, in recent years, taro day has shifted away from a general harvest celebration to a more practical exercise in planting and harvesting, due to the widespread devastation of the taro crop from the taro beetle. Corm scarcity due to the agricultural pest has contributed to increased domestic consumption of rice. This development has colored the traditional binge consumption of staple grains on Taro Day, as there have been several recorded deaths due to overconsumption of dry rice, which expands markedly in the stomach when swallowed, a problem not faced when binge eating taro corms.

The day also traditionally features a parade in which participants dress up as staple foods such as rice grains, breadfruit, cassava, coconuts, and taro corms. The parade normally begins with taro beetles and ends with a cornucopia.

ee Also

*Taro
*Rice
*Cornucopia

External Links

* [http://www.spc.int/lrd/Highlights_Archive/highlights_tarobeetle.htm The Taro Beetle and its effect on the taro crop]
* [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-20244852_ITM Taro Day and the Taro Beetle]
* [http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_eating_raw_rice_unhealthy_in_any_way Dry rice catalyzed stomach explosions]