Teff (), Eragrostis tef, also known as Williams lovegrass and annual bunch grass, is an annual species of lovegrass native to Ethiopia, where it originated in the Ethiopian Highlands.<!-- Teff is a plant, which allows it to more efficiently fix carbon in drought and high temperatures, and is an intermediate between a tropical and temperate grass. The name teff is thought to originate from the Amharic word teff, which means "lost". This probably refers to its tiny seeds, which have a diameter smaller than . It is mainly cultivated in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Because of its very small seeds, a handful is enough to sow a large area. This makes teff particularly suited to a seminomadic lifestyle. However, it does not tolerate frost. Highest yields are obtained when teff is grown between , with an annual rainfall of , and daily temperatures range from . Yields decrease when annual rainfall falls below 250 mm and when the average temperature during pollination exceeds 22 °C. Despite its superficial root system, teff is quite drought-resistant thanks to its ability to regenerate rapidly after a moderate water stress and to produce fruits in a short time span. It is daylight-sensitive and flowers best with 12 hours of daylight. Teff is usually cultivated on pH-neutral soils, but can tolerate acid soil pH below 5. Teff has a C4 photosynthesis mechanism.
Cultivation
As with many ancient crops, teff is quite adaptable; They can have a color from a white to a deep reddish brown. 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.
thumb |An Eritrean woman harvesting teff in Geshinashim, Eritrea
Teff is the most important commodity produced and consumed in Ethiopia where the flat pancake-like injera provides a livelihood for around 6.5 million small farmers in the country. In 2006, the Ethiopian government outlawed the export of raw teff, fearing export-driven domestic shortages like those suffered by South American countries after the explosion of quinoa consumption in Europe and the US. Teff yields had been increasing by 40 to 50% over the five previous years while prices had remained stable in Ethiopia. Usual sowing density ranges from 15 to 20 kg/ha, though farmers can sow up to 50 kg/ha, because the seeds are hard to spread equally and a higher sowing density helps to reduce weed competition at the early stage.
thumb |Field of teff
Recommended fertilization doses are 25–60 kg/ha for N, and 10–18 kg/ha for P. Teff responds more to nitrogen than to phosphorus; thus, high nitrogen inputs increase the biomass production and size of the plants, thereby increasing lodging. To avoid this, farmers can decrease nitrogen input, cultivate teff after a legume crop or adjust sowing time so that the rains have stopped when the crop reaches heading stage. In Ethiopia, teff is commonly used in crop rotations with other cereals and legumes. Teff is traditionally threshed by using animals walking on the harvest. Alternatively, some farmers rent threshing machines used for other cereals. Moreover, teff offers some promising opportunities for breeding programs: the first draft of the Eragrostis tef genome was published in 2014 and research institutes have started selecting for more resistant varieties. 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."
High-yielding varieties, such as Quencho, were widely adopted by farmers in Ethiopia. and an ethyl methanesulphonate (EMS)-mutagenized population was then used to breed the first semi-dwarf lodging-tolerant teff line, called kegne. In 2015, researchers tested 28 new teff varieties and identified three promising lines that generated yields of up to 4.7 tonnes per ha.
The "Teff Improvement Project" marked a milestone by releasing the first teff variety Tesfa to the Ethiopian markets in March 2017. Areas of further development include: "(i) improving productivity of teff; (ii) overcoming the lodging malady; (iii) developing climate-smart and appropriate crop and soil management options; (iv) developing tolerance to abiotic stresses such as drought and soil acidity; (v) developing suitable pre- and post-harvest mechanization technologies suitable for smallholder farmers as well as commercial farms; (vi) food processing and nutrition aspects with special attention to the development of different food recipes and value-added products; (vii) developing crop protection measures against diseases, insect pests and weeds; and (viii) improving or strengthening socio-economics and agricultural extension services."
Pests
The tef shoot fly (Atherigona hyalinipennis) is a major pest of the crop.
Other insect pests include:
- central shoot fly Delia arambourgi (seedling feeder)
- wello-bush cricket Decticoides brevipennis (flower feeder)
- red tef worm Mentaxya ignicollis
- tef epilachna beetle Chnootriba similis (leaf feeder); also transmits rice yellow mottle virus in rice
- chrysomelid black beetle Erlangerius niger (adults feed on developing grains and leaves)
- stem-boring wasp Eurytomocharis eragrostidis in the United States
Uses
thumb |[[Injera served in a typical Ethiopian dish]]
alt=|thumb |Teff (small grains) and [[sorghum (large grains), ingredients for tella]]
Teff is a multipurpose crop which has a high importance for the Ethiopian diet and culture. It is not only important for human nutrition, but also as fodder for livestock, or as building material. During meals, it is often eaten with meat or ground pulses. As a nutritious fodder, teff is used to feed ruminants in Ethiopia and horses in the US. It is a source of animal feed, especially during the dry season, and it is often preferred over straw from other cereals.
Teff is gluten free, and a method has been developed to process teff into a flour with a wider range of baking applications, such as for bread and pasta.
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! Amino-acid !! Concentration in raw teff, in g/16gN HPFI's CEO, Jans Roosjen, took out two patents on teff in 2003 and 2007, claiming that his way of milling and storing the flour was unique. HPFI went bankrupt in 2009, allowing Roosjen to utilize those patents and the marketing rights for the grain while being freed from the original agreement with Ethiopia. Roosjen sued a Dutch bakery company, Bakels, for patent infringement through selling teff baked goods. The Dutch patent office declared the patent void, stating that the methods used to bake and mix flours were "general professional knowledge". The government of Ethiopia has expressed intent to hold Roosjen accountable under patent law, and to regain ownership over international markets of its most important food.
Allergy
There is a documented case of a 29-year-old employee at an organic food production facility who was confirmed to be hypersensitive to teff. The allergy developed through oral exposure during routine product sampling (cereal and bread made from teff flour) at the workplace. Within 5 minutes of exposure to the allergen, symptoms such as a burning sensation in the mouth, tongue swelling, and swallowing difficulties appeared. The man described was also found to have an isolated allergy to milk thistle, as well as an allergy to wasp venom and certain raw fruits and vegetables. Given the growing popularity of teff as a substitute for traditional grains in a gluten-free diet, it can be assumed that hypersensitivity to this plant will be diagnosed more and more frequently.
See also
- Weeping lovegrass
References
External links
- Traditional Crops: Teff—Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
- "Teff: Overview" in the Encyclopedia of Food Grains, 2nd ed., Academic Press, 2016
- "Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter"—Purdue University Center for New Crops & Plant Products
- "Tef (Eragrostis tef) hay"—Feedipedia, a programme by INRA, CIRAD, AFZ and FAO, 2017
- Tef Improvement Project—University of Bern