Fonio (Digitaria spp.): The Good Tasting, Potential Food Security Cereal for Africa begs for Research Attention

Abstract

Cereals are important components of human nutrition the world over.  In Africa millets including fonios are integral parts of cereal-based staples of several millions of peoples in the continent. Fonios otherwise called acha or hungry rice are small-sized, low glycemic index grains that provide good amounts of calories for people with or without metabolic dysfunction. Sulphur-based amino acids especially methionine and cysreine are also in rich supply in the grains in amounts higher than those of popular legumes. However, this crop is neglected and suffers greatly from lack of scientific attention in several crop improvement progammes. Herein are presented sizeable information about the uses, constraints, prospects and potential health benefits of fonios. Efforts were made to highlight or pinpoint possible areas to beam strong research focus or attention on the crop. Such gray areas include their agronomy, profiles of their field and storage arthropod-pests, the complete nutritional composition of the grains, grain size enhancement and inherent mycotoxin contamination inhibitors in the grains, de-husking and de-stoning machines, anti-lodging genetic engineering, etc. Improving the crop in these areas will make these valuable indigenous cereals contribute their quota to food security and public health especially in Africa south of the Sahara.