Fonio

White fonio

Fonio is the term for two cultivated grasses in the genus Digitaria that are notable crops in parts of West Africa. They are millets with small grains. They have C4 carbon fixation as in many other grasses. They are medium in height.[1] The ploidy level for the species range from diploid (2n), tetraploid (4n), to hexaploid (6n).[2]

Fonio is consumed mainly in the West African countries, where it is also cultivated. The global fonio market was 673,000 tonnes in 2016.[3] The name fonio (borrowed by English from French) is from Wolof foño.[4]

Types

White fonio (Digitaria exilis)

White fonio, Digitaria exilis, also called "hungry rice," is the most important of a diverse group of wild and domesticated Digitaria species that are harvested in the savannas of West Africa. Fonio has the smallest seeds of all species of millet. It has potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development, and support sustainable use of the land.

Fonio has continued to be important locally because it is both nutritious, and is one of the world's fastest-growing cereals, reaching maturity in as little as six to eight weeks. It is a crop that can be relied on in semi-arid areas with poor soils, where rains are brief and unreliable. The grains are used in porridge and couscous, for bread, and for beer.

The small grains make it difficult and time-consuming to remove the husk. Traditional methods include pounding it in a mortar with sand (then separating the grains and sand) or "popping" it over a flame and then pounding it which yields a toasted-color grain; this technique is used among the Akposso. The invention of a simple fonio husking machine offers an easier mechanical way to dehusk.

Black fonio (Digitaria iburua)

Black fonio, D. iburua, is a similar crop grown in Nigeria, Niger, Mali, Guinea, Togo, and Benin, Ghana.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Haq, N (1995). Fonio (Digitaria exilis and Digitaria iburua). London: Chapman & Hall. pp. 2–6.
  2. ↑ Adoukonou-Sagbadja, H.; Schubert, V.; Dansi, A.; Jovtchev, G.; Meister, A.; Pistrick, K.; Akpagana, K.; Friedt, W. (2007-07-02). "Flow cytometric analysis reveals different nuclear DNA contents in cultivated Fonio (Digitaria spp.) and some wild relatives from West-Africa". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 267 (1–4): 163–176. doi:10.1007/s00606-007-0552-z. ISSN 0378-2697.
  3. ↑ Sergey Avramenko (3 May 2018). "Guinea Is the Largest Producing Country of Fonio". IndexBox. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Christian Seignobos and Henry Tourneux, Le Nord-Cameroun à travers ses mots: Dictionnaire de termes anciens et modernes: Province de l'extrême-nord (KARTHALA Editions, 2002; ISBN 2845862458), p. 107.

Further reading

  • National Research Council (14 February 1996). "Fonio (Acha)". Grains. Lost Crops of Africa. 1. Washington: National Academies Press. ISBN 978-0-309-04990-0. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  • "Fonio: an African cereal crop". CIRAD. Archived from the original on October 13, 2005. Retrieved January 10, 2006.
  • Kuta, Danladi Dada; Kwon-Ndung, Emmanuel; Dachi, Stephen; Ukwungwu, Mark; Imolehin, Emmanuel Dada (December 2003). "Potential role of biotechnology tools for genetic improvement of "lost crops of Africa": the case of fonio (Digitaria exilis and Digitaria iburua)". African Journal of Biotechnology. 2 (12): 580–585. ISSN 1684-5315.
  • Portères, R. (1955). "Les céréales mineures du genre Digitaria en Afrique et Europe". Journal d’Agriculture Tropicale et Botanique Appliquée (in French) (2): 349–386, 477–510, 620–675.
  • Portères, R. (1976). "African cereals: eleusine, fonio, black fonio, teff, Brachiaria, Paspalum, Pennisetum and African rice". In Harlan, J.R.; De Wet, J.M.J.; Stemler, A.B.L. Origins of African plant domestication. The Hague: Mouton. pp. 409–452.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.