Edible Plants of the World

Hungry rice, Fonio

A tropical plant. It can grow on poor, shallow soils. It grows on the edge of the Sahel. It grows in the savannah. It can tolerate drought. It grows in arid locations. It can grow with 400 mm average rainfall. It can grow in acidic soils with a high aluminium content. It can grow in arid places. It grows in areas with a temperature between 20°C to 30°C. In West Africa it grows between sea level and 1,500 m above sea level.

Also known as:

Acca, Acha, Achras, Afiohoun, Bofinhe, Couscous, Crabgrass, Eboniaye, Efoleb, Fani, Fenhe, Fim, Findi, Findo, Finger grass, Finhe, Fini, Foinye, Fonio, Fonyo, Founde, Fundenyo, Fundi, Fundo, Ipoa, Ipoaka, Ipoe, Ipogninime, Ipordapia, Ipordawan, Ii, pornKpendo, Odote, Orrote, Pei, Pende, Poaji, Podgi, Pohin, Pom, Rote, Sereme, Uante, Udute, Urote, White fonio

Synonyms

Edible Portion

Where does Hungry rice grow?

Found in: Africa, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sahel, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, West Africa

Notes: There are about 250 Digitaria species. The protein content is only 6-8%.

Status: It is harvested from about 325,000 hectares. It feeds about 3 million people during the most difficult months of the year. It is important in Guinea.

Growing Hungry rice, Fonio

Cultivation: Plants are grown from seed. Seed are sown very close together. They probably need a temperature above 25°C to germinate.

Edible Uses: The grain can be cooked for porridge or used in couscous. It can also be popped over a hot fire. It is ground into flour and used for bread and as a base for semolina.

Production: The growing period is 3-4 months. The plants are harvested with a sickle and tied into sheaths. These are dried then threshed and hulled with a mortar. Yields of 600-800 kg per hectare are average. Some varieties reach maturity in 40 days.

Nutrition Info

per 100g edible portion

Edible Part Energy (kcal) Protein (g) Iron (mg) Vitamin A (ug) Vitamin c (mg) Zinc (mg) % Water
Seed raw 332 7.1 8.5 0 - 0.82 11.2
Seeds cooked 145 2.9 3.5 0 - 0.61 63

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