PHOENIX, Ariz.-The Ojibwe people tell of a prophecy that spurred their journey from the Atlantic coast of North America to the Great Lakes region more than 1,000 years ago-revelations that told them to travel west to a land where food grew on the water.
That food? Wild rice, or "manoomin," to the Native American nations, which, like the Ojibwe, comprise the broader group of Anishinaabe tribes in the Upper Midwest and Canada.
But manoomin is much more than just a crop to these tribes and others. It represents their connection to nature and holds profound spiritual significance as a gift from th...