Mahinga kai

Mahika/mahinga kai is a highly significant concept for Māori. It encompasses the values and protection of natural resources and is specific to iwi and their rohe. The term ‘mahinga kai ‘ can mean ‘to work the food’. This relates to not just the gathering of kai but also the ecosystems and habitats these species are found in. It includes the intergenerational practices and tikanga used to produce, harvest and protect them.

Mahinga kai is about survival, about prosperity. It’s about relationships. It’s central to who we are as Ngāi Tahu.

Te Marino Lenihan (Ngāi Tūāhuriri, Ngāti Huirapa, Waitaha Ngāti Māmoe, Ngāi Tahu)

Being able to gather kai is about survival – being able to put food on the table. The skills and technology to do this effectively have allowed iwi to thrive while caring for natural environments. As well as this, the ability to collect resources affects the mana of an iwi or hapū as they contribute to their capacity for manaakitanga through the offering of food from their whenua and wai to manuhiri.

Mahinga kai connects people with place, tangata with whenua

There are many species associated with mahinga kai. Tuna, kōura and īnanka are some of the better known, but species like the tī kōuka (cabbage tree) and types of hekaheka (fungi) have also played important roles in providing sustenance for people and culture .

Ka hāhā te tuna ki te roto, ka hāhā te reo ki te kāika, ka hāhā te takata ki te whenua.

If there’s no tuna in the lake, there’ll be no language resounding in the house, there’ll be no people on the land. If the tuna are plentiful, you’ll hear the language, and you’ll see the people.

Charisma Rangipunga (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu, Taranaki, Ngā Rauru)

The whakataukī above speaks to the connection between mahinga kai and people. It highlights the importance of species like the tuna, not just for providing nourishment but also in sustaining cultural practices and knowledge. For example, repo (wetlands) are reservoirs of mātauranga Māori and places of deep historical, economic and spiritual significance. Colonisation and raupatu, the confiscation of land from Māori, has had devastating effects on the ability of iwi to practise kaitiakitanga of mahinga kai sites.

Challenges for mahinga kai

Environmental degradation, land conversion and sedimentation have negatively impacted many mahinga kai areas. These changes include the pollution of waterways by faecal contamination, chemicals and algal blooms. One of the consequences of this pollution is that kai harvested from these areas can be toxic or contain pathogens. This means that kai species that have provided nutrition for many generations may now cause disease.

The current and ongoing effects of climate change are also providing major challenges to the protection of significant mahinga kai habitats. Climate change raises CO₂ levels and increases ocean acidification, which then has an impact on life forms such as pipi, pāua and kina – meaning that these key taonga species are going to be at more risk of dying out. Dr Shaun Awatere states that this will go on to have a significant impact on the ability of iwi and hapū to be able to manaaki, to care for their people and for manuhiri. For many iwi, their wellbeing is connected to the harvesting of natural resources such as kaimoana from coastal environments.

Climate change impacts on Māori

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This infographic outlines a few of the impacts climate change poses to Māori traditional practices.

Download this image as a PDF.

Diagram by Ministry for the Environment, Stats NZ and data providers and released under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

Rights: Crown copyright 2020

Commercial practices and overharvesting, such as with the toheroa and pāua, has resulted in some taonga species no longer present in places where they were once abundant.

Taking action for mahinga kai

Many iwi and conservation groups are providing management and protection of areas in ways that allow future generations to continue to access mahinga kai. Tools such as rāhui and rauiri can be used to support the recovery of these populations. Rauiri can involve organised access to particular sites or the reservation of certain food for a specific group such as kaumātua. Rāhui can be used as a prohibition placed on an area in order to allow the resource to recover. Many other sustainable practices are embedded in tikanga and te reo Māori. One example is the use of the phrase ‘tūpou pāua’, tūpou meaning to bend. Tame Malcolm shares how this refers to the harvesting of pāua that you could reach by bending over – if you had to dive, the population was too small to harvest.

Kaitōrete Spit

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Kaitōrete is an area of significance to Ngāi Tahu. It is noted for its mahinga kai, rare and threatened flora and fauna species and areas of historical importance.

Rights: Phillip Capper, licensed under CC BY 2.0

Importantly, everyone can contribute to enhancing mahinga kai sites. Start by taking time to observe mahinga kai species in your local area and discover what used to live there. Reach out to mana whenua to find out about the local kupu Māori for species or if there are whakataukī connected to mahinga kai in your area. The Ake Ake model will support you to explore the past, present and future of mahinga kai in your local environment.

Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu

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Ngāi Tahu hold the rangatiratanga or tribal authority to over 80% of Te Waipounamu South Island. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu is the tribal council that protects and advances the interests of the iwi.

Rights: Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu