African 'stock-cubes' are made from néré seeds

Néré seeds are used to flavour the sauces that accompany every meal of tô or rice. Néré trees are never cleared from farming land because their black seeds are a vital part of every meal. The seeds are fermented and shaped into balls, called soumbala or Maggi Africain (African stock-cubes). When a landowner leases a plot of land to another farmer, the rights of the tree crops go to the tenant. But if there are néré trees on the land the owner will always keep the rights to the crop