Posted on July, 26, 2018 at 10:13 am
The sorghum sector in Uganda has changed over the years since the brewery industry started demanding more of this crop. Beer brands such as Senator, Eagle Lager and Chibuku are brewed using Sorghum as a main ingredient.
Nile Breweries Limited (NBL) has encouraged farmers to produce Epuripur, the beer variety of sorghum to increase production. Badesta Adeke is one of the farmers from Kumi district benefiting from the arrangement of NBL. She has been growing red and white sorghum for eight years. However, these sorghum varieties (Epuripur and Sila) have different challenges.
Challenges
“ the type of sorghum that I grow is severely affected by a disease called Striga and drought. Weeds also tend to compete destructively with the crop when the root parasite known as striga Asiatia attacks the sorghum. the seeds of the parasite are spread by the wind, and remain dormant in the soil for 15 to 20 years,” Adeke says, noting that she wishes to have a better variety that is drought- resistant and give better yields. Julius Isudo has been growing sorghum for the last 17 years.
He initially produced local varieties, however, with the production for breweries, he produces the improved varieties of Seso 2 and Seso 3 that were released in 2017.
However the yields are still too low to meet the demand and sometimes the seed provided are prone to drought, pests and diseases.
“ Limitations like pests and diseases affect the production of sorghum. for example, the Striga weed is responsible for approximately 10% of the crop loss, which affects the projected yield. |Sorghum aslso is usually attacked by birds that normally feed on the grain” Isudo Said.
Source: New Vision | Thursday, July 26, 2018 | Page 28