In 2010, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization estimated 925 million people worldwide are undernourished. Nearly 90 percent of these individuals live in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Pregnant and lactating women and children under the age of two are among the most vulnerable groups at risk of undernourishment.
Sorghum is proving its worth as a source for food aid due to the fact it contains proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, and performs well as a blended food ingredient. In fact, sorghum is the second most utilized grain in foreign countries suffering from food insecurities. Since September 2009, more than 22 million bushels of U.S. sorghum have been utilized for food aid. A majority of the sorghum is sent to Africa, feeding villages in Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Somalia, Sudan and Zimbabwe.
New opportunities for sorghum in food aid are continuously being explored. In fact, two sorghum food-aid blends have proven successful on a trial basis in Tanzania, Africa. As part of a U.S. Agency for International Development food aid project, these blends may soon be distributed throughout Africa.