The World of Sorghum — Millet mojo

Meet this handsome multifaceted giant of a grass!

Sorghum (jowar) field — Fig 1- Sorghum Field

“A giant indeed!” was my first ever impression of the sorghum plant. As described in my earlier blog post here, I was just a teenager when I saw a sorghum plant for the first time. Being a millet naïve at that time, I had no idea what I was looking at. Nevertheless, I distinctly remember the majesty of the plant (a grass actually) as it stood framed against the setting sun, its crown of grains glowing in the beautiful light. Till then, grass for me was the soft lawn grass beneath my feet as my friends and I ran around munching on buttery corn cobs. In stark contrast stood this giant in front of me, towering over every other plant.

Years later, while taking my baby steps into the millet world, I realized that what I had seen that day all those years ago was a grass which produced this mysterious grain known as “sorghum”. Sorghum—where does this word come from, and what does it mean? Sorghum comes from the Italian word “Sorgo,” which, in turn, comes from the Latin word “Syricum granum” meaning “grain of Syria” [1]. Don’t let the name mislead you though. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) is an ancient crop of African origin and is widely cultivated in semi-arid regions of Africa, Asia and the Americas. In fact, a U.S. Government publication describes sorghum as Africa’s contribution to the small number of elite grains, which include rice, wheat and maize [2]. It is a staple food for more than 500 million people in the dry and semi-arid regions, making it one of the most consumed grains in the world.

Sorgum or jowar upma- A South Indian breakfast dish made with whole sorghum and vegetables — Fig 2: Sorghum or jowar upma- A South Indian breakfast dish made with whole sorghum and vegetables

Although widely consumed as a food grain in Asia and Africa, sorghum is more popular as animal feed in USA, Mexico and Japan [3]. In fact, the use of sorghum as animal feed has doubled since the 1960s. In developed countries, sorghum as animal feed accounts for 97% of its total usage. The utility of the sorghum plant as animal feed is not limited to its grains; the stalks are a favorite of the animals too!

Fig 3: Sorghum is a favorite of birds and animals too!

Sorghum is an extremely versatile grain with plenty of uses beyond the obvious. Do you know that sorghum can also be used to make popcorn! Going by the words of the Crop Science Society of America, the relatively unknown popped sorghum seems to have an edge over its famous cousin, the mighty popcorn. Unlike the latter, popped sorghum has a smaller kernel size, making it perfect for food items like snack bars. Popping enhances its flavor and is quite energy-efficient, unlike cooking sorghum by boiling, which is a long process. If you decide to cook it the way you cook white rice, your pearlies will be wrecked enough to earn your dentist that much-awaited cruise. Ok, that may be extreme, but cooking sorghum by boiling does take time. Popping it just might be the way to go about it, especially if you are taking your first uncertain steps in the world of sorghum. Be warned, however, that not all varieties of sorghum are ideal “poppers”. Of the 3,682 varieties at International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), only 36 have shown good popping qualities. Hopefully, one day, these 36 varieties will catch the attention of enthusiastic entrepreneurs willing to try their hand at making delicious popped sorghum [4]!

There is also a variety of sorghum, known as sweet sorghum, which is used for making a sweetener called sorghum syrup. In fact, the process of making sorghum syrup from sorghum closely mimics that of sugar from sugarcane. You can watch a video of the process of sorghum juice extraction by checking out this website [5]. The sorghum canes are passed through a press which extracts the sweet juice. This juice is subsequently boiled down to make sorghum syrup, a sweet honey-like liquid comparable to molasses. When compared to other sweeteners, sorghum syrup was found to have a significantly higher content of potassium, magnesium, iron and calcium (Ref). A favorite in the southern part of the United States, sorghum syrup can be found drizzled over biscuits, pancakes and cornbread.

Fig 5: Sorghum syrup is often found drizzled over biscuits, pancakes and cornbread.

Sweet sorghum has another totally different use—biofuel. Sorghum has high biomass yield and is adapted to grow in semi-arid regions, making it a key crop of the future for biofuel production. The sweet juice in the stalks of sweet sorghum contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, which are essential for bioethanol production [6]. This plant has been shown to far outperform maize, the traditionally used crop, in bioethanol production; while sweet sorghum yields 8,102 litres per hectare planted, maize yields just 4,209 litres per hectare. If the future is biofuel, sweet sorghum is bound to be a key player in that!

Last but not the least on the list (ah, my twisted tongue!)—Sorghum broom. Did I just hear that laughter of yours which is supposed to mean, “I can’t believe you actually added that to the list!”? Let me tell you a secret. Sorghum is also known as broomcorn, and that name originates from the fact that a variety of sorghum (Sorghum vulgare var. technicum) is used for making brooms and whiskbrooms.

Do you know that there is a college in Kentucky that has been making sorghum brooms for 100 years [7]? The royal cousins of the humble sorghum broom sitting in my backyard, these brooms go through dyeing and braiding to form decorative objects worthy of being hung on the walls of your living room. Picture this—a broom as the centerpiece of your opulent living room! Made by hand, these brooms come out of the longest continuously operating broomcraft workshop in the US. Their best product till date? The “rocket” broom intended for witches—or Harry Potter fans!