Assessing enset fibre yield and quality for a wide range of enset [Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman] landraces in Ethiopia

Blomme, Guy; Yemataw, Zerihun; Tawle, K.; Sinohin, V.G.O.; Gueco, Lavernee S.; Kebede, R.; Lalusin, Antonio G.

doi:10.17660/th2018/73.6.3

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Teli and Terega () analyzed the characteristics of enset fiber, including tensile strength, elongation at breaking point and thermal stability, and found it to be comparable with many other natural fibers such as abaca, flax, sisal, hemp, and jute. Blomme, Yemataw, et al () found enset fiber to have a tensile strength of 9.8–17.5 kg g −1 m −1 . Enset fiber has the potential to be used for a range of novel applications beyond traditional uses, and there is likely to be variation in performance across genetically diverse landraces.…”

Section: Processing Methods Products and Cultural Importancementioning

confidence: 99%

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Enset‐based agricultural systems in Ethiopia: A systematic review of production trends, agronomy, processing and the wider food security applications of a neglected banana relative

Borrell

Goodwin

Blomme³

et al. 2020

Plants People Planet

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Enset is a staple food for over 20 million people via its starch-rich corm and pseudostem, yet it is virtually unknown outside a narrow zone of cultivation in southern Ethiopia. Due to acculturation and urbanization coupled with climate change, emerging pests and the introduction of new crops, the extensive indigenous knowledge associated with this crop is in danger of being lost, imperilling the future food security and prosperity of millions of Ethiopians. Here, we synthesize the current state of enset ethnobotanical research, identifying key gaps and challenges, and provide a framework for further enset research to safeguard this important, but neglected, tropical crop. SummaryEnset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman) is the major starch staple of the Ethiopian Highlands, where its unique attributes enhance the food security of approximately 20 million people and have earned it the title "The Tree Against Hunger".Yet enset-based agriculture is virtually unknown outside of its narrow zone of cultivation, despite growing wild across much of East and Southern Africa. Here, we review historical production data to show that the area of land under enset production in Ethiopia has reportedly increased 46% in two decades, whilst yield increased 12fold over the same period, making enset the second most produced crop species in Ethiopia-though we critically evaluate potential issues with these data. Furthermore, we address a major challenge in the development and wider cultivation of enset, by reviewing and synthesizing the complex and fragmented agronomic and ethnobotanic knowledge associated with this species; including farming systems, processing methods, products, medicinal uses and cultural importance. Finally, we provide a framework to improve the quality, consistency and comparability of data collected across culturally diverse enset-based agricultural systems to enhanced sustainable | 213 BORRELL Et aL. S U PP O RTI N G I N FO R M ATI O N Additional supporting information may be found online in the Supporting Information section. How to cite this article: Borrell JS, Goodwin M, Blomme G, et al. Enset-based agricultural systems in Ethiopia: A systematic review of production trends, agronomy, processing and the wider food security applications of a neglected banana relative. Plants, People, Planet. 2020;2:212-228. https ://doi.

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Section: Processing Methods Products and Cultural Importancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fiber is extracted from the pseudostem and leaves, largely as a by‐product of kocho production (Figure ) (Blomme, Yemataw, et al, ). The fibers are dried to make sacks, ropes, sieves and mats.…”

Section: Processing Methods Products and Cultural Importancementioning

confidence: 99%

Enset‐based agricultural systems in Ethiopia: A systematic review of production trends, agronomy, processing and the wider food security applications of a neglected banana relative

Borrell

Goodwin

Blomme³

et al. 2020

Plants People Planet

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“…Approximately, 600 tons of enset fibres have been sent to factories each year. is implies that enset fibre has a wide application in paper and pulp industries and also in construction as reinforcement in gypsum room decorations and panels [79].…”

Section: Industrial Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies have been done on morphological and chemical characterization of enset residue fibres. e morphological analysis reports have revealed longer fibre length, tinny cell wall thickness, large lumen diameter, thick fibre width [80], high tensile strength [79,81], elongation at break, crystallinity index, and high thermal stability [81] compared to hard woods, agricultural residues, and bagasse. Chemically, enset residue fibre is found to possess the highest cellulose and smallest lignin and extractives as compared to the leaf fibre [80,81], which is a plus quality for the fibre.…”

Section: Industrial Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nevertheless, this property of enset residue fibre is compromised by the thin cell wall thickness [82]. In general, findings of several studies demonstrate that enset fibre has comparable properties to many of the world-class natural fibres such as abaca, flax, sisal, hemp, jute, kenaf, and ramie fibres [79][80][81]83]. In spite of these qualities and potential, enset fibre has not been exploited for a variety of applications.…”

Section: Industrial Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ensete ventricosum: A Multipurpose Crop against Hunger in Ethiopia

Yemata

2020

The Scientific World Journal

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Ensete ventricosum is a traditional multipurpose crop mainly used as a staple/co-staple food for over 20 million people in Ethiopia. Despite this, scientific information about the crop is scarce. Three types of food, viz., Kocho (fermented product from scraped pseudostem and grated corm), Bulla (dehydrated juice), and Amicho (boiled corm) can be prepared from enset. These products are particularly rich in carbohydrates, minerals, fibres, and phenolics, but poor in proteins. Such meals are usually served with meat and cheese to supplement proteins. As a food crop, it has useful attributes such as foods can be stored for long time, grows in wide range of environments, produces high yield per unit area, and tolerates drought. It has an irreplaceable role as a feed for animals. Enset starch is found to have higher or comparable quality to potato and maize starch and widely used as a tablet binder and disintegrant and also in pharmaceutical gelling, drug loading, and release processes. Moreover, enset shows high genetic diversity within a population which in turn renders resilience and food security against the ever-changing environmental factors and land use dynamics. Therefore, more research attention and funding should be given to magnify and make wider use of the crop.

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