WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., May 21 (UPI) -- U.S. students and faculty at Purdue University in Indiana have modified a popping machine that might bring needed relief to malnourished people in Africa.
The machine, called an amaranth popper, works something like a popcorn popper. Officials said amaranth grain has been shown to be high in vitamins, minerals and protein and could go a long way toward boosting nutrition and combating hunger in countries such as Uganda, Kenya and Zimbabwe, where starvation, disease and HIV infections are common.
Richard Dugger, director of the Seyan Foundation in Culver, Ind., approached Purdue's Technical Assistance Program for help in solving a problem with the amaranth popper machine that was originally powered by electricity. He discovered electricity is not always available in African areas, but propane is. "So it became clear that we must modify the machine to make it marketable," Dugger said.
Dugger was introduced to Professor Mileta Tomovic. He and graduate students Milan Rakita and Vukica Jovanovic, were able to successfully modify the machine to be powered by propane gas.
Dugger said he will travel to Uganda at the end of this month to set up programs for installation of the grain poppers.