Sorghum and millets are being pursued by grain farmers in the United States and India. Photo by FreePhotosART/Pixabay
Dec. 26 (UPI) — Long used as animal feed, super-crop sorghum is getting a public relations push from a newly created alliance called the Indo-US. Millets Initiative as the group looks to promote its use as a grain for human consumption.
Used for beer-making, syrup production, and edible grains, sorghum has been grown in America since the days of Ben Franklin.
Dubbed a super-crop, the plant thrives in the heat and grows best in climates with long summers. For that reason, many growers in the United States and internationally have been eyeing it as a way to safeguard against rising temperatures due to climate change.
Now, they’re looking to get the word out.
Several organizations, including Sorghum United, the North American Millets Alliance, the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute and the India Millets Initiative announced the initiative Thursday, which would expand the market and awareness campaign for sorghum and millets.
The Initiative also represents a formalizing of relations between the United States and India for food production.
In a statement, Sorghum United CEO Nate Blum said creating the Indo-US. Millets Initiative, based in Nebraska, would provide an opportunity for native researchers, academics, members of the private sector and governmental institutions in India to further collaborate and exchange “small grain” knowledge between India and the United States.
While it’s currently mainly used for livestock feed and ethanol production, sorghum has been growing in popularity as an ingredient in consumer foods and as a potential biofuel.
The crop is also full of protein, iron, vitamin B6, niacin, magnesium and phosphorus and is also high-energy, providing 10 percent protein and nearly 75% complex carbohydrates recommended by the the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“Indo-U.S. collaboration on the Decade of Millets presents an exciting opportunity to build on complementary strengths in order to enhance the roles of millets, including sorghum, in sustainable agriculture, healthy food, and economic development,” Don Osborn, the co-founder of the North American Millets Initiative, said in a statement.
For the last several years, the United States has reigned as the world’s largest producer of grain sorghum, having produced 11.4 million metric tons of sorghum during the 2021-22 growing season.
That year, Nigeria produced about 6.7 million metric tons of sorghum, according to numbers provided by Statista.com.
Traditionally, Midwest states that including Kansas, South Dakota, Texas, Colorado and Nebraska have been the largest producers of sorghum in the United States.
Several types exist, including grain sorghum, which is a grass that’s used to feed livestock and is processed into flour for human consumption. Onyx sorghum is a newer variety developed by researchers at Texas A&M University.
In 2022, the USDA added sorghum to its Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs, which is the primary resource used by school food service directors to build menus that comply with agency nutrition requirements.