DuPont Collaborates with Howard G. Buffett Foundation
| Sorghum is one of the five top cereal crops in the world, along with wheat, oats, corn, and barley. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide, but the largest producer of sorghum today is Africa. |
The grant will help fund the completion of the development of biofortified sorghum, a more nutritious and digestible sorghum for Africans who depend upon sorghum as their staple diet. DuPont Pioneer began working on the project in 2005 in conjunction with the African Biofortified Sorghum (ABS) Consortium, an Africa-led public-private partnership. The ABS Consortium is a key partner in this project and will work to secure regulatory approvals and pursue production and deployment plans as Pioneer and Danforth complete product development.
Sorghum is a cereal that has many characteristics comparable to corn. However, unlike corn, sorghum is naturally drought tolerant. It provides calories and minimal nutrition in dry areas of Africa. The sorghum nutritional improvement project will permit greater levels of essential nutrients to be delivered to those who live in arid places where sorghum is relied upon as the staple food source. Additionally, the biofortified sorghum may become important in new geographies as a result of the effects of climate change.
The introduction of biofortified sorghum is expected to have a major impact on the health and life of targeted communities in Africa – not only by offering improved nutrition, but by providing the sorghum at minimal cost to growers. Biofortified sorghum will be distributed to underserved communities in multiple African countries, royalty free.
“The collaboration between Buffett, Danforth and DuPont is a powerful example of the ability of public-private partnerships to accelerate innovation to solve problems,” said Paul Schickler, president – DuPont Pioneer. “We are just a few short years away from getting nutritionally improved sorghum into the hands of those who need it most.”
View the press release.