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Review
. 2025 Jun 11:16:1574699.
doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1574699. eCollection 2025.

Harnessing the potential of millets for climate-resilient and sustainable agriculture

Bishal Mukherjee  1 , Ratnesh Kumar Jha  1 , Abdus Sattar  1 , Suman Dutta  2 , Urjashi Bhattacharya  3 , Snigdha Samanta  4 , Boris Huirem  5 , Shivam Kumar Singh  1 , Suddhasuchi Das  6 , Santanu Kumar Bal  7
Affiliations
Review

Harnessing the potential of millets for climate-resilient and sustainable agriculture

Bishal Mukherjee et al. Front Plant Sci. .

Abstract

Millets are increasingly gaining global attention for their immense potential to address major challenges such as hunger and malnutrition, and the climatic risks on agricultural production. With the world's population steadily increasing, it is essential to find sustainable solutions for regional food and nutrition security, and support the livelihoods of farmers-especially under changing climate. Among various crops, small millets offer a promising yet underutilized option in the pursuit of food and nutritional security. These crops possess superior nutritional profiles compared to traditional staple cereals and demonstrate exceptional resilience to harsh environmental conditions. They can grow with minimal irrigation and thrive on poor-quality soils. This makes millets ideal for sustainable agriculture in challenging environments. This review highlights the current status of small millets, including their nutritional and health benefits, processing techniques, and recent advancements in genomics. It emphasizes the importance of integrating small millets into mainstream agricultural systems and applying omics technologies to fully realize their potential in combating food insecurity under climate stress. Additionally, the review explores modern genomic and genetic engineering approaches that aim to enhance the climate resilience of small millets. By understanding the molecular basis of these traits, researchers can develop improved varieties with greater adaptability and consistent yields under variable environmental conditions. The comprehensive analysis presented in this review serves as a strategic roadmap for leveraging next-generation technologies to improve key traits in small millets. The ultimate goal is to develop superior varieties that can address the complex challenges of agri-food production system under climate uncertainties. Furthermore, the review outlines pathways to increase the commercial appeal and market viability of millets. By focusing on the development and promotion of small millets, the agricultural sector can take significant steps toward achieving food, nutritional, and economic security in the wake of growing global challenges.

Keywords: climate-resilient; crop alternative; dietary nutrients; food security; millets; underutilized crops.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Different types of millets with their botanical name.
Figure 2
Figure 2
General structure of millet grain (Rao et al., 2017).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Millet based products developed through different processing technologies (Ref: Rao et al., 2016; Shi et al., 2015; Yemets et al., 2020).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Processing technologies of millets (Ref: Rao et al., 2016; Yousaf et al., 2021; Selladurai et al., 2023) .
Figure 5
Figure 5
Schematic representation of research and development components for millet production.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Schematic diagram depicting importance of millets research, processing and marketing.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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