Use and Nutrient Composition of Traditional Sahtú (Hareskin) Dene/Métis Foods

Foods indigenous to two communities of the Sahtu Dene/Metis of the Northwest Territories, Canada, are reported for their use frequency and for their composition for moisture, protein, fat, ash, computed carbohydrate and energy, and for the mineral elements Ca, P, Na, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mg, and Mn.

Abstract

Foods indigenous to two communities of the Sahtú Dene/Métis of the Northwest Territories, Canada, are reported for their use frequency and for their composition for moisture, protein, fat, ash, computed carbohydrate and energy, and for the mineral elements Ca, P, Na, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mg, and Mn. Summary data are also reported for the contents of Cr, Co, Ba, Mo, Sn, Sr, Ti, Ni, Si, and V. This is the first comprehensive report of this group of nutrients in the primary foods of the Sahtú Dene/Métis traditional food system, and it is the first report for many nutrients in several of the foods. New information is presented for several land mammals, birds, fish, and berries. The species most frequently reported to be used are caribou (Rangifer tarandus), moose (Alces alces), beaver (Castor canadensis), muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), Canada goose (Branta canadensis), burbot (Lota lota), whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis), black scoter (Melanitta nigra), ptarmigan (Lagopus sp.), and berries (Vaccinium myrtilloides, Ribes oxyancanthoides, Vaccinium vitis-idaea, etc.) Data on several other species are presented.