Founder and Managing Director of Space in Africa, Dr. Temidayo Oniosun has explained why egusi was chosen over other Nigerian ingredients such as ogbono or fisherman soup, stating that cultural symbolism was a key factor in the decision.
During an interview on Channels TV on Friday, he said, “I think personally, and, you know, this is a personal experience or personal story. I think that Egusi is the most cultural dish in Nigeria. You know, everybody eats Egusi. The Yorubas lay claim to Egusi that it originated from them. Even the Igbos also, they do the same.
“They say, oh, you know, Egusi is from Igbo land. So a lot of people lay claim to its origin and I don’t think there is a better dish that says, ‘See, I’m Nigerian,’ than Egusi. Even people in the diaspora can connect to this. And it has also traveled way beyond Nigeria. If you go across West Africa, you know, people are eating Egusi.”
He added that the space seed experiment was only the beginning of a broader initiative.
“This is the first stage of this experiment. We’re going to send more stuff to space in the future. And so for people that are curious about other soup, other dishes, or other seeds, we’re going to send more.”
Dr. Oniosun stated that feeding aliens with egusi is not out of the question, as Nigerian seeds now form part of an experiment in space.
Responding to a question whether the project was designed to “feed aliens,” Oniosun replied:
“I mean, yeah, that’s a possibility. You know, some people have also been asking, you know, what would happen to the seed? But, you know, we don’t know. Maybe we’ll bring the seeds back and then, you know, we’ll plant it and it will germinate something else. We don’t know.
“And that’s why we’re doing all of these experiments. So I think it’s very exciting. And, you know, personally, I’m looking forward to all of the things that we’ll learn from this experience.”
On Thursday, Nigerian egusi seeds became the first Nigerian object in orbit, launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for NASA’s Crew-11 mission to the ISS.
Led by Dr. Oniosun of Space in Africa, the project tests egusi’s resilience in space conditions to explore its potential for space agriculture.
