Database for grain Fe and Zn in sorghum – A proposal

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) is the fifth most important cereal staple crop in subtropical and semi-arid regions of Africa and Asia (Reddy et al. 2011). It is the second cheapest source of energy and micronutrients, after pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) with a vast majority of the population in Africa and Central India depending on it for their dietary energy and micronutrient requirements (Parthasarathy Rao et al. 2006). Micronutrient malnutrition, primarily the result of diets deficient in bioavailable vitamins and minerals, causes blindness and anemia (even death) in more than half of the world’s population, especially among women of reproductive age, pregnant and lactating women and pre-school children (Underwood 2000, Sharma 2003, Welch and Graham 2004). Efforts are being made to provide fortified foods to these vulnerable groups. Biofortification, where possible, is the most costeffective and sustainable solution for tackling micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries of arid-tropical and subtropical regions as the intake of micronutrients is on a continuous basis with no additional cost to the consumer. Widespread interest is being shown in biofortification of sorghum by increasing mineral micronutrients [especially iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn)] in grains (Pfeiffer and McClafferty 2007, Ashok Kumar et al. 2009)