Improving Sorghum Qualities to Alleviate Hunger & Malnutrition
Generating Healthy Food Systems Solutions
Generating Healthy Food Systems Solutions
Scovia Adikini, Ph.D.
National Agricultural Research Organization
Year Awarded 2023
FFAR award amount $809,879
Total award amount $1,619,758
Location Entebbe, Uganda
Program Seeding Solutions
Matching Funders International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), National Agriculture Research Organization (NARO)
Developing High-Nutrient, Drought-Resistant Sorghum Varieties
Dryland regions of sub-Saharan and East Africa are characterized by low rainfall, drought and poor soil, which severely affect the nutritional quality and yield of most crops. These conditions contribute to food and nutrition insecurity among children and women.
Sorghum is a major food and forage crop that can survive in harsh conditions, but sorghum’s nutritional value differs across varieties and the crop contains high levels of substances known as antinutrients that limit the body’s ability to absorb the nutrients. Additionally, the crop can support livestock production by using its stalks and leaves as livestock forage, but some sorghum varieties contain hydrocyanic acid, which is highly toxic to livestock and humans
To address this, researchers led by Dr. Scovia Adikini of the National Agricultural Research Organization are identifying and developing sorghum varieties with higher nutritional value and improved yield while reducing antinutrient and hydrocyanide levels.
Both humans and livestock in dry areas of east Africa have suffered high levels of malnutrition. This is largely due to the low availability of micronutrients but also to the presence of antinutritional factors in the existing dominant crops, like sorghum. We are addressing this by increasing the micronutrient level in sorghum, ensuring its bioavailability, and reducing the level of antinutritional factors like hydrogen cyanide in order to guarantee food and feed quality for enhanced nutrition both in humans and livestock.
Dr. Scovia Adikini
Principal Investigator, National Agricultural Research Organization
Details about this research
Research Objectives
- Identify nutritional and antinutritional traits in sorghum grains and develop more nutritional varieties with increased bioavailability and adapted to dry lands of East Africa.
- Determine sorghum hydrogen cyanide levels and develop low-hydrogen cyanide sorghum varieties to increase availability of livestock feed.
- Determine sorghum nutritional quality genes and molecular markers to accelerate breeding.
- Document smallholder farmers’ sorghum uses and processing techniques and how these influence nutrient quantity and bioavailability.
These research objectives will lead to the development of improved sorghum varieties, which will improve smallholder farm profitability and improve food and nutrition security regionally. Additionally, the fortified crop can also provide benefits globally by increasing agricultural diversity.
Research As A Solution: Understanding Sorghum Nutritional Markers & Current Farmer Preferences Guides Improved Sorghum Variety Development
Researchers are developing highly nutritional sorghum varieties resilient to climate change, resistant to emerging pests and with desirable consumer traits.
How This Research Supports to FFAR'S Mission: Healthy Food Systems Research
This research is developing more nutrient dense sorghum crop, increasing crop biodiversity and improving human health.
Matching Funders
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), National Agriculture Research Organization (NARO)
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