26.01.2022
Enset Plants Could Feed More Than 100 Million People
A new study suggests that a plant relative of the banana, found only in Ethiopia, has the potential to feed more than 100 million people in warming environments if its cultivation were to be expanded. Enset, also known as the "false banana," is a starchy crop that is a food staple in Ethiopia. While its fruit is inedible, the study says its stems and roots can be fermented and are commonly used to make porridge and bread.The study, published in December in the journal Environmental Research Letters, reports that about 20 million people in Ethiopia currently rely on enset for food. The fruit grows all year round and is resilient in climate change, which researchers say makes it the perfect option to feed those who live in countries that are often faced with droughts and similar climate issues. The study found that enset could feed more than 100 million people over the next four decades and boost food security in Ethiopia and other African countries with suitable environments, including Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
Credit: WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
Credit: WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
Poverty deprives people of adequate education, health care and of life's most basic necessities- safe living conditions (including clean air and clean drinking water) and an adequate food supply. The developed (industrialized) countries today account for roughly 20 percent of the world's population but control about 80 percent of the world's wealth.
Poverty and pollution seem to operate in a vicious cycle that, so far, has been hard to break. Even in the developed nations, the gap between the rich and the poor is evident in their respective social and environmental conditions.
Poverty and pollution seem to operate in a vicious cycle that, so far, has been hard to break. Even in the developed nations, the gap between the rich and the poor is evident in their respective social and environmental conditions.
