Sorghum
Sorghum (/ˈsɔːrɡəm/) or broomcorn is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption, in pastures for animals as fodder, and as bristles for brooms. Sorghum grain is a nutritious food rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and minerals.
| Sorghum | |
|---|---|
 | |
| S. bicolor | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Panicoideae |
| Supertribe: | Andropogonodae |
| Tribe: | Andropogoneae |
| Subtribe: | Saccharinae |
| Genus: | Sorghum Moench 1794, conserved name not Sorgum Adanson 1763 |
| Type species | |
| S. bicolor | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Sorghum is either cultivated in warm climates worldwide or naturalized in open plains. In 2021, world production of sorghum was 61 million tonnes, with the United States as the leading grower.
History
Sorghum was domesticated from its wild ancestor more than 5,000 years ago in what is today Sudan. The newest evidence comes from an archaeological site near Kassala in eastern Sudan, dating from 3500 to 3000 BC, and is associated with the neolithic Butana Group culture. It was the staple food of the kingdom of Alodia.
Taxonomy
Sorghum is in the grass family, Poaceae, in the subfamily Panicoideae, in the tribe Andropogoneae – the same as maize (Zea mays), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), and sugarcane (Saccharum spp.).
Species
Accepted species recorded include:
- Sorghum amplum – northwestern Australia
- Sorghum angustum – Queensland
- Sorghum arundinaceum – Africa, Indian Subcontinent, Madagascar, islands of the western Indian Ocean
- Sorghum bicolor – cultivated sorghum, often individually called sorghum, also known as durra, jowari, or milo. Native to Sahel region of Africa; naturalized in many places
- Sorghum brachypodum – Northern Territory of Australia
- Sorghum bulbosum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum burmahicum – Thailand, Myanmar
- Sorghum controversum – India
- Sorghum × drummondii – Sahel and West Africa
- Sorghum ecarinatum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum exstans – Northern Territory of Australia
- Sorghum grande – Northern Territory, Queensland
- Sorghum halepense – Johnson grass – North Africa, islands of eastern Atlantic, southern Asia from Lebanon to Vietnam; naturalized in East Asia, Australia, the Americas
- Sorghum interjectum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum intrans – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum laxiflorum – Philippines, Lesser Sunda Islands, Sulawesi, New Guinea, northern Australia
- Sorghum leiocladum – Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria
- Sorghum macrospermum – Northern Territory of Australia
- Sorghum matarankense – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum nitidum – East Asia, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Micronesia
- Sorghum plumosum – Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia
- Sorghum propinquum – China, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Christmas Island, Micronesia, Cook Islands
- Sorghum purpureosericeum – Sahel from Mali to Tanzania; Yemen, Oman, India
- Sorghum stipoideum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
- Sorghum timorense – Lesser Sunda Islands, Maluku, New Guinea, northern Australia
- Sorghum trichocladum – Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras
- Sorghum versicolor – eastern + southern Africa from Ethiopia to Namibia; Oman
- Sorghum virgatum – dry regions from Senegal to the Levant.
| Sorghum production – 2021 | |
|---|---|
| Country | (Millions of tonnes) |
 United States | 11.4 |
 India | 4.8 |
 Ethiopia | 4.4 |
 Mexico | 4.4 |
 Argentina | 3.3 |
 China | 3.0 |
| World | 61.4 |
| Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations | |
Genetics and genomics
Agrobacterium transformation can be used on this genus, as shown in a 2018 report of such a transformation system. A 2013 study developed and validated an SNP array for molecular breeding.
Distribution and habitat
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.
Production
In 2021, world production of sorghum was 61 million tonnes, led by the United States with 19% of the total (table). India, Ethiopia, and Mexico were secondary producers.
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 329 kJ (79 kcal) |
72.1 g | |
| Sugars | 2.53 g |
| Dietary fiber | 6.7 g |
3.46 g | |
| Saturated | 0.61 g |
| Monounsaturated | 1.13 g |
| Polyunsaturated | 1.56 g |
10.6 g | |
| Vitamins | Quantity %DV† |
| Vitamin A equiv. | 0% 0 μg |
| Thiamine (B1) | 28% 0.332 mg |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 7% 0.096 mg |
| Niacin (B3) | 23% 3.69 mg |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 7% 0.367 mg |
| Vitamin B6 | 26% 0.443 mg |
| Folate (B9) | 5% 20 μg |
| Vitamin C | 0% 0 mg |
| Vitamin E | 3% 0.5 mg |
| Minerals | Quantity %DV† |
| Calcium | 1% 13 mg |
| Copper | 32% 0.284 mg |
| Iron | 19% 3.36 mg |
| Magnesium | 39% 165 mg |
| Manganese | 70% 1.6 mg |
| Phosphorus | 23% 289 mg |
| Potassium | 12% 363 mg |
| Selenium | 22% 12.2 μg |
| Sodium | 0% 2 mg |
| Zinc | 15% 1.67 mg |
| Other constituents | Quantity |
| Water | 12.4 g |
| †Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. | |
Toxicity
In the early stages of plant growth, some sorghum species may contain levels of hydrogen cyanide, hordenine, and nitrates lethal to grazing animals. Plants stressed by drought or heat can also contain toxic levels of cyanide and nitrates at later stages in growth.
Nutrition
The grain is edible and nutritious. It can be eaten raw when young and milky, but has to be boiled or ground into flour when mature.
Sorghum grain is 72% carbohydrates including 7% dietary fiber, 11% protein, 3% fat, and 12% water (table). In a reference amount of 100 grams (3.5 oz), sorghum grain supplies 79 calories and rich contents (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of several B vitamins and dietary minerals (table).
Use
Sorghum cultivation has been linked by archeological research to ancient Sudan around 6,000 to 7,000 BP. One species, S. bicolor, native to Africa with many cultivated forms, is a common crop worldwide, used for food (in the form of grain or sorghum syrup), animal fodder, the production of alcoholic beverages, and biofuels.
In Nigeria, the pulverized red leaf-sheaths of sorghum have been used to dye leather, and in Algeria, sorghum has been used to dye wool.
Polyphenols
All sorghums contain mixed polyphenols, such as phenolic acids and flavonoids. Sorghum grains are one of the highest food sources of proanthocyanidins.
Cultivation
Most varieties of sorghum are drought- and heat-tolerant, nitrogen-efficient, and are grown particularly in arid and semi-arid regions where the grain is one of the staples for poor and rural people. These varieties are forage in many tropical regions. S. bicolor is a food crop in Africa, Central America, and South Asia, and is the fifth most common cereal crop grown in the world.
International trade
In 2013, China began purchasing US sorghum as a complementary livestock feed to domestically grown maize. It imported around $1 billion worth per year until April 2018, when it imposed retaliatory tariffs as part of the trade war. By 2020, the tariffs have been waived, and trade volumes increased again before declining again as China began buying sorghum from other countries. As of 2020, China is the world's largest sorghum importer, importing more than all other countries combined.
References
Further reading
- Watson, Andrew M. (1983). Agricultural Innovation in the Early Islamic World: The Diffusion of Crops and Farming Techniques, 700–1100. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-24711-X.
External links
- . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). 1911.
- "Sorghum and millets in human nutrition" FAO Report (1995) Archived 2018-10-01 at the Wayback Machine
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