Eragrostis tef
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The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with Eritrea and Ethiopia and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (June 2010) |
| Eragrostis tef | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| (unranked): | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Chloridoideae |
| Genus: | Eragrostis |
| Species: | E. tef |
| Binomial name | |
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Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter |
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| Synonyms | |
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Eragrostis abyssinica (Jacq.) Link |
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Eragrostis tef, known as teff, taf (Amharic ጤፍ ṭēff, Tigrinya ጣፍ ṭaff), is an annual grass, a species of lovegrass native to the northern Ethiopian Highlands of Northeast Africa.
Common names include teff, lovegrass, annual bunch grass (English); Ṭeff/Ṭéff (Amharic, both representing the same sound, an ejective consonant); Ṭaffi/xaffi (Oromo, both representing the same sound); Ṭaff (Tigrinya); and mil éthiopien (French - 'Ethiopian millet'). It is also written as ttheff, tteff, thaff, tcheff, and thaft.[1] The word "tef" is connected by folk etymology to the Ethio-Semitic root "ṭff", which means "lost" (because of the small size of the grain).
Description
Eragrostis tef has an attractive nutrition profile, being high in dietary fiber and iron and providing protein and calcium.[2] Some consider it to have a sour taste. This might be because it is often eaten fermented. It is similar to millet and quinoa in cooking, but the seed is much smaller and cooks faster, thus using less fuel.
Distribution
Eragrostis tef is adapted to environments ranging from drought stress to waterlogged soil conditions. Maximum teff production occurs at altitudes of 1,800 to 2,100 m, growing season rainfall of 450 to 550 mm, and a temperature range of 10 to 27 °C. Teff is day length sensitive and flowers best with 12 hours of daylight.
Teff is an important food grain in Ethiopia and Eritrea, where it is used to make injera, and less so in India and Australia. It is now raised in the U.S., in Idaho in particular, with experimental plots in Kansas, American customers including people from traditional teff consuming countries and also people desiring to eat teff to avoid glutens that irritate celiac disease.[3] Because of its small seeds (less than 1 mm diameter), a handful is enough to sow a large area. This property makes teff particularly suited to a seminomadic lifestyle.
History
Teff is believed to have originated in Ethiopia between 4000 BCE and 1000 BCE. Genetic evidence points to E. pilosa as the most likely wild ancestor.[4] A 19th century identification of teff seeds from an ancient Egyptian site is now considered doubtful; the seeds in question (no longer available for study) are more likely of E. aegyptiaca, a common wild grass in Egypt.[5]
Cultivation and uses
In 1996, the US National Research Council characterized Teff as having the "potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development and support sustainable landcare."[2]
Teff has been widely cultivated and used in the countries of Eritrea and Ethiopia. Teff accounts for about a quarter of total cereal production in Ethiopia.[6] The grain can be used by celiacs (the gluten in teff does not contain the a-gliadin-fraction that causes celiac disease) and has a high concentration of different nutrients, a very high calcium content, and significant levels of the minerals phosphorus, magnesium, aluminum, iron, copper, zinc, boron, barium, and thiamin.[7] Teff is high in protein. It is considered to have an excellent amino acid composition, including all 8 essential amino acids for humans, and is higher in lysine than wheat or barley.[citation needed] Teff is high in carbohydrates and fiber. In one 2003-2004 study in Ethiopia, farmers indicated a preference among consumers for white teff over darker colored varieties.[8]
References
- ^ Anon. 1887[specify]
- ^ a b National Research Council (1996-02-14). "Tef". Lost Crops of Africa: Volume I: Grains. Lost Crops of Africa. 1. National Academies Press. pp. 222. ISBN 978-0-309-04990-0. http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=2305&page=215. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
- ^ http://www.matr.net/article-6172.html Teff for gluten intolerance
- ^ Ingram AL, Doyle JJ (2003). "The origin and evolution of Eragrostis tef (Poaceae) and related polyploids: Evidence from nuclear waxy and plastid rps16". American Journal of Botany 90 (1): 116–122. doi:10.3732/ajb.90.1.116.
- ^ Germer, Renate (1985). Flora des pharaonischen Ägypten. Mainz: von Zabern. ISBN 3-8053-0620-2.
- ^ Gabre-Madhin, Eleni Zaude. Market Institutions, Transaction Costs, and Social Capital in the Ethiopian Grain Market. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute, 2001
- ^ "Teff and Gluten Intolerance". Food Lorists. http://foodlorists.blogspot.com/2007/11/teff-and-gluten-intolerance.html. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
- ^ Belay G, Tefera H, Tadesse B, Metaferia G, Jarra D, Tadesse T (2006). "Participatory Variety Selection in the Ethiopian Cereal Tef (Eragrostis Tef)". Experimental Agriculture 42: 91–101. doi:10.1017/S0014479705003108.
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External links
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