Every now and then at seed fairs, you’ll hear farmers say:
“Mahindi ya asili yanaongeza nguvu za kiume.” In their own way of explaining the role of high zinc and Iron content in the local Maize varieties.
I recently came across one among many data collected in collaboration by IDP, PELUM and other organizations. A scientific evidence on nutrition content in our local traditional crops.
Brown/red local maize has
• Iron: 109 ppm
• Zinc: 72+ ppm
What does this means nutritionally:
There are 109 milligrams in every 1 kilogram of maize. In just 100g of this maize, you can get 10.9 mg of zinc.
According to NIH recommendations:
• Men need ~11 mg/day
• Women need ~8 mg/day
That means a simple serving of traditional maize can meet or come very close to daily zinc needs.
Meaning:
With these exceptional zinc and iron sources we can combat hidden hunger and improve cognitive and immune system.
Why are we overlooking crops that naturally deliver what we’re trying to fortify?
hashtag#NUCs hashtag#TraditionalCrops hashtag#Nutrition hashtag#HiddenHunger hashtag#FoodSystems hashtag#SeedSystems hashtag#IndigenousKnowledge hashtag#Tanzania hashtag#ECHOfightshunger
