FAO highlights giant swamp taro

A press release by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has highlighted a paper in the latest edition of the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, sponsored by FAO.  The study reveals the potential health benefits of giant swamp taro, an increasingly neglected crop in Micronesia, where there are serious nutrition problems, as traditional foods are being replaced by imported foods of lower nutritional content.  The release points out that 

… a group of researchers from the Federated States of Micronesia, Switzerland, Fiji, Australia, USA, and Palau have generated new data, and confirmed previous findings, showing that Micronesian giant swamp taro (Cyrtosperma merkusii) varieties are rich sources of nutrients. For the first time, the researchers present data on carotenoid and mineral content of many varieties of giant swamp taro, in addition to dietary characteristics of Micronesian citizens. According to lead researcher Lois Englberger, certain varieties contain high amounts of micronutrients, including beta-carotene and essential minerals such as zinc, iron, and calcium.

The full press release can be found here. ((Thanks to Lois Englberger for this information.))

Dust my broom

Back in the late 1700’s, Benjamin Franklin found a small seed on a whisk broom that a friend had brought him from France for dusting his beaver hat. Next spring he planted that seed and it grew into a tall corn-like plant with a flowering brush of stiff fibers bearing seeds.

Can that possibly be true? That the entire American broom industry is based on a single accidental sorghum seed? Must be, I got it from an official document, here. And I got that from this merry flight of fancy: A Farrago On Brooms, Broomcorn, and Broom Dusting. Full of interesting nuggets, some wicked satire, and whole lot of entertainment.

Moringa update

A comment on an ancient post about Moringa prompted two reactions. First, happiness that our page must be turning up in someone’s searches, tinged with sorrow that I don’t know of any financial partners to help protect the Congo basin with Moringa. Secondly, to ask what’s new with Moringa.

moringaleafpowder.JPG Not a lot at the site itself, but that’s probably because they’ve all been working to spread the word. And that word is that Moringa Leaf Powder is likely to be certified by the Food and Drug Board of Ghana, if they receive the necessary data. I hope that happens soon because it will offer an outlet and an income opportunity to all the people who have worked so hard to bring Moringa products to market.

But I confess I’m not all that happy myself with the designation of Moringa as “The Miracle Tree”. Sure it’s a good tree, and as Luigi said back then “really the adjective ‘multi-purpose’ could have been invented for this plant”. There’s all too much miracle silver-bullet style thinking around, and I would have hoped that, knowing the value of diversity better than anyone, the folks associated with Moringa would be less inclined to put all their eggs in one basket and all their faith in one tree.

Still, that’s quibbling. Snooping around on some other photos, I noticed the URL for the Environmental Development Youth Movement, which seems to be a key promoter of Moringa in Ghana. Fascinating site (especially if you like photographs of lots of packages) which has its own village and which seems to be doing good work. They’re looking for volunteers too. Say we sent you.

Photo by Armelle de Saint Sauveur