[18] Bambusoideae (bamboos) (fescue, ryegrass) Hordeum (barley) Triticum (wheat) Secale (rye) Oryza (rice) Pennisetum (fountaingrasses, pearl millet) Millets Sorghum (sorghum) Zea (maize) S. bicolor was domesticated from its wild ancestor more than 5,000 years ago in Eastern Sudan in the area of the Rivers Atbara and Gash.

[20][21] It has been found at an archaeological site near Kassala in eastern Sudan, dating from 3500 to 3000 BC, and is associated with the neolithic Butana Group culture.

[22] Sorghum bread from graves in Predynastic Egypt, some 5,100 years ago, is displayed in the Egyptian Museum, Turin, Italy.

[23] Sorghum remained the staple food of the medieval kingdom of Alodia and most Sub-Saharan cultures prior to European colonialism.

[29] Most varieties of sorghum are drought- and heat-tolerant, nitrogen-efficient,[30] and are grown particularly in arid and semi-arid regions where the grain is one of the staples for poor and rural people.

[37] Diversified 2- or 4-year crop rotation can improve sorghum yield, additionally making it more resilient to inconsistent growth conditions.

[45] Sorghum is a host of the parasitic plant Striga hermonthica, purple witchweed; that can reduce production.

[55][57] In 2021, world production of sorghum was 61 million tonnes, led by the United States with 19% of the total (table).

[58] In 2013, China began purchasing American sorghum as a complementary livestock feed to its domestically grown maize.

It imported around $1 billion worth per year until April 2018, when it imposed retaliatory tariffs as part of a trade war.

[59] By 2020, the tariffs had been waived, and trade volumes increased [60] before declining again as China began buying sorghum from other countries.

[65] Sorghum grain is 72% carbohydrates including 7% dietary fiber, 11% protein, 3% fat, and 12% water (table).

In a reference amount of 100 grams (3.5 oz), sorghum grain supplies 79 calories and rich contents (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of several B vitamins and dietary minerals (table).

[66] In the early stages of plant growth, some sorghum species may contain levels of hydrogen cyanide, hordenine, and nitrates lethal to grazing animals.

[12] It can be made into couscous, porridge, or flatbreads such as Indian Jōḷada roṭṭi or tortillas; and it can be burst in hot oil to make a popcorn, smaller than that of maize.

[70] In China and Taiwan, sorghum is one of the main materials of Kaoliang liquor, a type of the colourless distilled alcoholic drink Baijiu.

[85] In Australia, sorghum is personified as a spirit among the Dagoman people of Northern Territory, as well as being used for food; the local species are S. intrans and S.

[86] In Korea, the origin tale "Brother and sister who became the Sun and Moon" is also called "The reason sorghum is red".

[87] In the tale, a tiger who is chasing a brother and sister follows them up a rotten rope as they climb into the sky, and become the sun and moon.

[88] In Northeastern Italy in the early modern period, sticks of sorghum were used by Benandanti visionaries of the Friuli district to fight off witches who were thought to threaten crops and people.