Ethiopia, FAO unveil a project to transform ‘Teff’ productivity

Addis Ababa, August 4, 2023 (FBC) – The Government of Ethiopia in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched a new project titled “One Country One Priority Product” to promote value addition and increase productivity of ‘Teff’ crop.

The project which is part of the five year initiative put in place by FAO in 2021 is said vital to produce Teff grain with special quality thereby improving the nutrition system in Ethiopia.

FAO Representative in Ethiopia, Farayi Zimudzi, stated that the crop is chosen by the Ethiopian government to be part of the project. He added that Teff is becoming a preferable product all over the world because it is gluten-free food crop.

“Since Teff is a source of food security for millions of farmers in Ethiopia, it is necessary to boost productivity of the crop,” he said.

He said that in Ethiopia, teff is produced by millions of farmers and is the basis of their food security.

Farayi Zimudzi explained that adding value to Teff production requires the cooperation of all stakeholders, adding that the activity as a major step to ensure food security of farmers in the country.

Horticulture Sector Advisor for the Ministry of Agriculture, Abdulsemed Abdo, indicated that more than 3 million hectare of land is covered with Teff crop annually in Ethiopia. Teff is grown as a cash crop by more than 70 million farmers throughout Ethiopia every year, it is stated.

“The teff value chain development will improve our farmers’ income as 90% of the world’s production is from Ethiopia. There is an increasing demand for the crop because of its high iron, calcium and protein content; gluten-free food and high in fiber,” Abdulsemed added.

Teff is the most important dietary food crop in Ethiopia.