Well it goes by many names, but in Nigeria we call it Acha. To you, it may be Fonio, or hungry rice. Small-seeded grains, high dietary fiber, gluten-free, low glycemic index and rich in amino acids not found in your usual cereals. I would say it has everything going for it. So stupid of me to ask if the world really needs it. Off course the world needs this.
We have a weird way of showing it though; because this West-African crop is currently under-utilized and neglected.
In addition to all that, Fonio also has the potential to boost food security, improve nutrition and foster sustainable use of land. This crop can grow and produce yield even in the poorest of soils where other cultivated cereals dare not grow. It is also fast growing, maturing in 6-8weeks. Rice has got nothing on it. When other cereals are still on the fields chilling, Fonio is at the finishing line already and set to start the race all over again. It’s called hungry rice, duh! it just won’t let you go hungry any time of the year.
The problem is, not much work has been done to improve fonio for higher productivity and less-laborious postharvest processing. Researchers have neglected it and producers have simply looked the other way.
Fonio has a lot of potentials and if given the opportunity can play a huge role in food security. Maybe it could even become a cheaper raw material for some of the products we have going in the food industry – talk about a cheaper alternative for semolina, low-glycemic and gluten-free baking flour, a raw material for making couscous or beer and how about some hot breakfast cereals? Did I also mention that the grains can be popped?
agwithEzinne 