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UN eyes revival of millets as global grain uncertainty grows

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, works in her field in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

A woman holds a bottle filled with millet seeds stored in a seed bank in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Thursday, Jan, 19, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, right, works in her field near a child in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Pierre Thiam, executive chef and co-founder of New York-based fine-casual food chain Teranga, cooks fonio, a variety of millet in El Cerrito, Calif., Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. “Fonio is nicknamed the Lazy Farmers crop. That’s how easy it is to grow," Thiam said. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)

Products made from fonio, a variety of millet, are displayed on a table at the home of Pierre Thiam, executive chef and co-founder of New York-based fine-casual food chain Teranga, in El Cerrito, Calif., Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. “Fonio is nicknamed the Lazy Farmers crop. That’s how easy it is to grow," Thiam said. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)

Pierre Thiam, executive chef and co-founder of New York-based fine-casual food chain Teranga, cooks fonio, a variety of millet in El Cerrito, Calif., Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. “Fonio is nicknamed the Lazy Farmers crop. That’s how easy it is to grow," Thiam said. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, winnows millet on a bamboo mat in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, feeds her chickens millet grains in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, works in a field in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Jestina Nyamukunguvengu takes a break while working in her fields of millet crop in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Thursday, Jan, 19, 2023. Farmers like Nyamukunguvengu in the developing world are on the front lines of a project proposed by India that has led the U.N.’s Food and Agricultural Organization to christen 2023 as “The Year of Millets,” an effort to revive a hardy and healthy crop that has been cultivated for millennia — but was largely elbowed aside by European colonists who favored corn, wheat and other grains. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

A bug sits on a leaf that is part of a millet crop in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Jestina Nyamukunguvengu walks near a pearl millet crop in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Thursday, Jan, 19, 2023. Farmers like Nyamukunguvengu in the developing world are on the front lines of a project proposed by India that has led the U.N.’s Food and Agricultural Organization to christen 2023 as “The Year of Millets,” an effort to revive a hardy and healthy crop that has been cultivated for millennia — but was largely elbowed aside by European colonists who favored corn, wheat and other grains. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Maria Chagwena, a millet farmer, holds a plate with millet grains outside her house in Zimbabwe's arid Rushinga district, northeast of the capital Harare, on Wednesday, Jan, 18, 2023. With concerns about war, drought and the environment raising new worries about food supplies, the U.N.'s Food and Agricultural Organization has christened 2023 as the “Year of Millets” — grains that have been cultivated in all corners of the globe for millennia but have been largely pushed aside. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

UN eyes revival of millets as global grain uncertainty grows