Sorgum

Sorghum is a genus of flowering plants in the grass family Poaceae, which includes about 25 species. Some of these species have grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species, Sorghum bicolor, was originally domesticated in Africa and has since spread throughout the globe. Seventeen of the 25 species are native to Australia, with the range of some extending to Africa, Asia, Mesoamerica, and certain islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

History

Sorghum is in the subfamily Panicoideae and the tribe Andropogoneae (the tribe of big bluestem and sugarcane). The name "sorghum" comes from Italian "sorgo", in turn from Latin "Syricum (granum)" meaning "grain of Syria".

Despite the antiquity of sorghum, it arrived late to the Near East. It was unknown in the Mediterranean area into Roman times. Tenth-century records indicate it was widely grown in Iraq, and became the principal food of Kirman in Persia. In addition to the eastern parts of the Muslim world, the crop was also grown in Egypt and later in Islamic Spain. From Islamic Spain, it was introduced to Christian Spain and then France (by the 12th century). In the Muslim world, sorghum was grown usually in areas where the soil was poor or the weather too hot and dry to grow other crops.

Cultivation and uses

Sorghum is cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. It is used for food, alcoholic beverages, and biofuels. Most varieties are drought- and heat-tolerant, and are especially important in arid regions, where the grain is one of the staples for poor and rural people. These varieties form important components of forage in many tropical regions.

Sorghum is used for making a traditional porridge, flatbread, pita bread, and couscous in Africa, beer in Sudan and a syrup in America. It is also used in making ethanol, a biofuel, in China and the United States.

Nutritional value

Sorghum, like many grains, has a diversity of uses, including human consumption and animal feed. It provides numerous essential nutrients in rich amounts, including dietary fiber, the B vitamins niacin, thiamin and B6, and several dietary minerals, such as manganese (76% DV), phosphorus (55% DV) and iron (46% DV) per 100 grams raw serving.

See also

• Cereal
• Biofuel
• Ethanol fuel
• Sudan