In 1988 EC, a devoted young journalist named Mulunesh Jebessa was preparing a radio program on Fana Radio about food preparation and nutritional value of meals made up of a plant called Amaranth, a pseudo cereal commonly used as staple food by Menit society in South Western Ethiopia.
“First, I was working in the radio as science-awareness-deepening program producer in various scientific issues including food preparation and nutrients. That was how I got involved in documentary production about the Amaranth product, its nutritional value and the way the people consumed it. However, there was as shortage of information or documents due to the absence of internet service by the time. After a long trial, I got some books and publications that revealed the usage of Amaranth in India to prepare biscuits and other fast foods,” she reverted back.
She was born and brought up in Addis Ababa. She learned fundamental science at Addis Ababa University. Since then, she had contributed science-based articles to various media outlets. But she had no idea about Amaranth until she met people from the south who told her about its significance while she was producing a Radio program to Fana. However, despite this inspiration to dig more about Amaranth, Mulunesh left Fana for own business in communication.
On the other hand, an Ethiopian expatriate researcher from Russia named Dessalegn Leyew who made his PhD on Amaranth plant came to Ethiopia in 2005 EC. He had joined Bahir Dar University. Then he moved to southern Ethiopia to conduct further studies on the plant as per the suggestion of one of his students. On the course, he met the society that consume Amaranth plant and told him about the food culture, which was winning fame after broadcasted on Fana Radio by a journalist named Mulunesh.
He then came to Addis Ababa and met her. Then they discussed on how to give life to the project of introducing the product nationwide. “By the time, he told me that a kilo of Amaranth in Russia was costed four Birr. He widened my view about the product and inspired me to work more in the area,” Mulunesh recalled.
Amaranth is known in Ethiopia by various names including Yeferenj Teff, Aluma and Katilla in Amhara and SNNPs states to mention few. However, the people disregarded it considering the plant as a weed for its wildness of growth nature anywhere. In fact, it is not only in Ethiopia many people across the world took Amaranth as “pig weed” for their lower understanding about the nutritional value of the product.
Together with Dessalegn and other researchers, Mulunesh had organized a symposium on Amaranth in 2005 EC. AAU biotechnology Master’s degree students did partake in the symposium that exhibited researches and the product of Amaranth in various forms. The participants had also tested and liked the product prepared in terms of cookies. But none of them were able to ask why the product hadn’t been introduced in so many places so far.
“This is what impressed me and I thought that poor awareness is the reason behind disregarding this nutritious plant,” she expressed. Then Mulunesh took a license from the Ethiopian Intellectual Property Office on the Fortification of Amaranth Seed and Leaf with Cereal Staple Foods in June 2006 EC. Her motive is to promote the Amaranth among all Ethiopians by mixing it with other staple foods and upgrading its micronutrients at the same time.
But she had to draw lessons from the utilization of Amaranth in neighboring countries. Accordingly, she understood that the plant was widely produced in Kenya. She started to look into how they harness it. Consequently, she understood that the country had first undertaken an assessment of ecological impact, and endorsement of legal framework before incorporating the plant in its agricultural system.
This made Mulunesh to think about the necessity of development intervention of the government to produce the cereal by supporting smallholders. So that she had to establish an organization led by board members incorporating about six experts that have proficient knowledge in the area of agriculture, food technology and fortification. And true to her wishes she materialized her dream. She founded Amaranth Farm Ecology.
“Now we are working with universities about the fortification and multiplication of the seed of Amaranth using their community engagement role. I am also working on introducing the product in the areas where the experimental universities are settled,” Mulunesh said.
WHO and FAO have recognized the nutritional value of the plant and are working to the widespread production and consumption of Amaranth.
Therefore, we had to work on identifying the resource areas and massively producing the seed to be expanded and widely used by the general people. Actually, Amaranth is produced by small number of people even on margin lands that are not preferred for widely-produced staple food crops cultivation.
Therefore, we have to strive for extra production by identifying market opportunity and the way the farmers can be beneficiaries or ensure food security. The seed is preferable to food security for many reasons as it doesn’t need much water and fertile land and has a short maturity period.
It is also important to sell the processed product of the crop. It can be sold in terms of biscuit, cookies and so on. And it helps to subsidize the expensive and low-nutrient cereals like wheat. Recently, Mulunesh has organized a workshop on Amaranth and one of the participants has brought a biscuit made up of a mixture of Amaranth and Soybean.
Amaranth contains proteins and other micronutrients like calcium, iron, manganese, magnesium and phosphorous among others. Mulunesh is fond of bread made up of Amaranth.
She said that among the 60 types of Amaranth, about four species are edible. Luckily, all of them are found in Ethiopia. Amaranth is a nutraceutical crop which can be served as both food and medicine. She planned to put up the product for market as a supplementary diet. She identified school gardens and university compounds as experimental spaces for the development of the plant. It is in this perspective she is working with Ambo University by selecting a demonstration site in Ambo town specifically at Tokle Kutay area.
However, the experiment’s progresses are yet not announced as it is the character of every research; it can’t be publicized before practical conclusion is reached and published on international journals. The research began after receiving Amaranth seeds from the Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute. It is our big move to develop Amaranth and other crop seeds that have been known but not widely cultivated by farmers. Her organization has been working for more than one year now.
Mulunesh planned to organize farmers to produce Amaranth. She intends to receive their products with fair price and supply it to the market by adding value. She vowed to establish a processing industrial center to this end.
She has years of experience in creating public awareness on protecting and consuming products mainly the local ones. So, working in international organizations as communication expert, she developed the skill of promoting such products and about the application of development intervention activities.
Therefore, Mulunesh has envisioned attracting international market through approaching global health-conscious tourists or visitors of nature-based destinations to buy her product. She also vowed to supply the product to urban areas in the form of poppy seed.
On 25 October, Mulunesh had organized a summit in the capital themed Promoting Nutritious and Marginal Crops for Food Sovereignty. And the summit zeroed in on endorsing legal framework, practical experiment on the consumption of Amaranth in the presence of various stakeholders including food and agriculture experts. Arsi University also shows interest to work together on the cultivation of Amaranth in university’s gardens.
Today, nutrition-sensitive agriculture is being applied worldwide and she desires to see to the application of this system on various products that Mulunesh wants to invest on through her organization that receive financial and technical support from Danish Church Aid Ethiopia. She is also aims at promoting other products like yam, casaba and variety cabbage for wide usage among the people.
BY YOHANES JEMANEH
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD NOVEMBEBER 19/2021
