Beyond the hoopla: Millets must be promoted. But health and economic concerns need priority

Nutritional advantages of millets are offset by presence of phytic acid; cultivation yield also poor compared to wheat and rice

Culture has helped millets survive

Throughout ages, many rituals have been associated with millet cultivation and women are to be thanked for this

‘Labour burden on women millet producers must be reduced’

Shailaja Fennell, an expert in gender and household dynamics in agriculture, talks to Down To Earth about millet production in India

Boost indigenous millet recipes over packaged products

Preparing millets fresh should be made easy instead of promoting ultra-processed packaged foods; this may be the way to bring it into …

Here is how millets can make India’s food basket climate-resilient

Too much dependence on rice can make India vulnerable

International year of millets: Centre to work on decentralised processing & marketing

Themes for a comprehensive plate-to-farm millet food system proposed the People’s Convention on Millets for Millions

Millets in PDS a game changer for combating malnutrition, climate change

Subsidised cereals distributed under PDS have increased the consumption of excessive starch instead of pulses, legumes, vegetables, nuts and milk,…

Mission Millet: Odisha employed a holistic agri-strategy to procure 600,000 quintals of ragi

Farmer producer organisations, crop intensification methods play key role in process

How Odisha is revalorising minor millets 

Despite their glorious past, millets have been sidelined in farms and on food plates over the years

This 45-year-old makes farming profitable for the entire Soliga tribe

Prakash roped in 30 Soliga farmers and 1,000 other marginal farmers and formed a collective to set up a millet processing unit in Karnataka's …

Look back at the decade: Food

The second decade of the millenium saw the spread of permaculture in India

How investing in processing machines can help India promote millets

An African-Canadian company is helping promote Mali's fonio millet by investing in processing machines. India too needs to procure advanced …

Grounded in wisdom: The forgotten chakki should regain its place

Traditional mini flour mills may no longer be in vogue in our homes, but they help prepare nutritious food 

The humble gourd is falling out of favour

Gourd has sculpted the culture and traditions of rural India for ages 

Millets are returning to our fields and plates

In the past 60 years, India’s agriculture policy has focused mainly on rice and wheat and neglected millets. But these nutri cereals are …

Traditionally secure: The Baigas and their uncultivated foods

People belonging to the Baiga tribe mostly depend on forests and its plants for their livelihood. They possess the ability to recognise hundreds …

Restaurants turn to indigenous foods for lucrative business

Serving local cuisines comes with major operational challenges too

Biotechnology for food security: hope over hype

A range of biotechnological approaches, including both traditional ones like selective breeding and fermentation techniques, and modern ones such …

Faced with water crisis, Karnataka now wants to revive millet cultivation

Millets consume at least 70 per cent less water than other crops and require minimum inputs

In photos: Millet laddoos help fight malnutrition in rural Odisha

Mighty millet

A new pearl millet variety resistant to downy mildew disease

Improved heat tolerance and drought resistance help pearl millet fight climate change

The reference genome and analysis of 1,000 lines of the pearl millet genome has provided the clue as to how this dryland cereal survives in …

Humble millets can ensure food security, nutrition to India’s vulnerable communities

Shifting from climate-resilient and micro-nutrient-rich traditional crops to cash crops has resulted in poor health indicators, says expert

Ancient DNA is revealing the genetic landscape of people who first settled East Asia

It has shown rapid shifts in ancestry over the last 10,000 years across Asia, likely due to migration and cultural exchange

Are millets safe from biopiracy?

2023 is the International Year of the Millets and during the year, efforts would be made to promote this superfood