Slim might be in elsewhere but for Ethiopia’s  Bodi or Me’en people, bigger is always better. The tribe, which lives in a  remote corner of Ethiopia’s Omo Valley, is home to an unusual ritual which sees  young men gorge on cow’s blood and milk in a bid to be crowned the fattest  man.

Six months after starting the regime, the men  emerge to show off their newly engorged physiques and for a winner to be chosen.  The champion fat man is then feted as a hero for the rest of his life.

Now the little known rite is the subject of  incredible photos taken by French shutterbug Eric Lafforgue – who spent time  with the Bodi while travelling through south-western Ethiopia during the run up  to the Bodi New Year or Ka’el ceremony.

Hero: Every child wants to become one of the fat men,  according to Lafforgue, who are feted as heroes by the rest of the tribe for  their incredible feat

Competition: On the day of the Ka’el ceremony, the  tribe’s fat men walk for hours around a sacred tree, watched by other men and  helped out by the women

Challenge: The feat begins six months before the Ka’el  ceremony when participants retire to their huts where they stay, while the women  bring them food

Too much! A Bodi man finds that his morning bowl of  blood and milk is a little too much and is ill outside his hut – watched by a  baffled-looking herd of cows

Regime: Each competitor is nominated by his family who  then spend the next six months helping him to fatten up on a diet of cow’s blood  and milk

Sadly, the Ka’el ritual and the Bodi’s  traditional way of life is under threat from the Ethiopian government who plan  to resettle 300,000 people from all over the country on their lands.

For now, the tribe continue as they always  have, and still celebrate Ka’el in traditional style each June.

The contest begins six months before the  ceremony. Every family is allowed to present an unmarried man for the challenge,  who, after being chosen, retires to his hut and must not move or have sex for  the duration.

Food comes in the form of a cow’s blood and  milk mixture, served regularly to the men by women from the village. ‘The cows  are sacred to the Bodi tribe so they are not killed,’ explains Lafforgue. ‘The  blood is taken by making a hole in a vein with a spear or an axe, and after  that, they close it with clay.’

Because of the scorching temperatures, the  men have to drink the two-litre bowl of blood and milk quickly before it  coagulates but as Lafforgue reveals, not everyone can handle drinking so much at  speed.

‘The fat men drink milk and blood all day  long,’ he says. ‘The first bowl of blood is drunk at sunrise. The place is  invaded by flies. The man must drink it quickly before it coagulates but some  cannot drink everything and vomit it.’

On the day itself, the men cover their bodies  with clay and ashes before emerging from their huts for the walk to the spot  where the ceremony will take place.

Men in the Bodi Tribe in Ethiopia compete to be  crowned fattest…

Preparation: On the big day, the contenders for the Bodi  tribe’s fattest man ceremony ready themselves by covering their bodies in a  mixture of white clay and ash

Decoration: The dress code for the ceremony also  includes a selection of beautifully worked headdresses, in this case, one made  from cowrie shells and ostrich plumes

Covering: Every part of the men’s bodies are daubed with  the ash and clay mixture and the men also wear colourful beaded necklaces and  bracelets

On the way: Once the men are ready to go, they walk to  the sacred tree where the ceremony takes place – a challenge for them because of  their weight

Challenging: For many of the fat men, the walking proves  exhausting. Luckily, the women (left) and Lafforgue himself (right) help them  out

Relief: During the walk and the ceremony that follows,  the Bodi women are on hand to help out the fat men with drinks of water and  fortifying alcohol

Thanks to the weight gain, many  of them find covering the short distance tougher than the weeks spent fattening  up. ‘Some fat men are so big that they cannot walk anymore,’ explains  Lafforgue.

‘One asked me if he could use my  car to go to the ceremony area. Once in the car, he started to drink milk and  blood again because he said he wanted to keep trying to be the fattest until the  very last moment.’

The ceremony itself involves  spending hours walking in a circle around a sacred tree, watched by the other  men and helped by the women who ply them with alcohol and wipe away the  sweat.

Once the fattest man has been  chosen, the ceremony ends with the slaughter of a cow using a huge sacred stone.  Village elders will then inspect the stomach and the blood to see whether the  future will be a bright one or not.

After the ceremony, the men’s  lives return to normal and most lose their enormous bellies after a few weeks of  eating sparingly. But a few weeks later, the next generation of competitively  fat Bodi men will be chosen and the cycle will begin again.

‘Becoming a fat man is the dream  of every Bodi kid,’ says Lafforgue. ‘A few weeks [after the ceremony] he will  recover a normal stomach but he will remain a hero for life.’

See more of Eric’s work at  ericlafforgue.com and  at flickr.com/photos/mytripsmypics

Sacred: The fat men run or walk around the village’s  special tree, watched by the tribe’s elders and other men, and helped by the  women

Exhausting: Because the men are so overweight and have  been unable to exercise for six months, they need regular breaks during the  ceremony

On tenterhooks: After hours of running around the tree  in the scorching sun, the men wait to hear who will take the title of the Bodi’s  fattest man

Nerves: The women await the results with just as much  interest as the men – the majority of Bodi girls hope to one day marry one of  the fat men if they can

Winner: The 2013 champion is the man on the left, who  beat off all comers – including the man on the right. Both will be feted as  heroes for the rest of their lives

Sacrifice: The Bodi kill one of their precious cows at  the end of the ceremony and the village elders inspect its blood and entrails to  see what the future holds for them

Relief: After the ceremony has concluded, the men return  to normal eating patterns and have usually lost the extra weight within a few  weeks of Ka’el

Opportunity: Women use the Ka’el ceremony to inspect  potential future husbands – in the Bodi tribe, fat is considered extremely  attractive

Threatened: The Bodi’s traditional lifestyle is under  threat because of government plans to settle 300,000 people from all over  Ethiopia in Hana Mursi, the main Bodi town

Beautiful: A Bodi woman living in the threatened village  of Hana Mursi displays her spectacular scar patterns and elegant gold coiled  cuff jewellery

Striking: The women attending the ceremony use it as an  opportunity to show themselves off in their brightest and most beautiful  clothes