QPM Boosts Growth of Children in Rural Ethiopia

A recent study on the nutritional benefits of quality protein maize (QPM) in Ethiopia revealed that the heights and weights of preschool children whose diets included QPM as their main starchy staple increased more than 20 percent faster than those of children who ate conventional maize. The QPM variety BHQP 542, developed by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), was introduced in the country in 2002. The maize contains increased levels of the essential amino acids tryptophan and lysine.

"Quality Protein Maize has the potential to increase nutrition, improve health, and contribute to the food security of farming families in East Africa, especially in Ethiopia" says Doug Tanner, a Canadian agronomist who heads the Ethiopian office of the CIMMYT. Maize is becoming a major staple food in Ethiopia, as the price of teff (traditional cereal) is rising beyond the means of resource-poor consumers.

Read the complete article at http://www.cimmyt.org/english/wps/news/2008/jul/nutriMaize.htm