ABSTRACT
Millets are termed “nutri-cereals” because of their functional and nutraceutical properties. India is the biggest millet-growing country in the world. Rice, wheat, and corn are extensively advanced in the diversification of processing machinery and product technologies. Despite possessing high nutritional content, the consumption of millets has declined in the past six decades, due to a lack of government policies, processing technologies, and awareness. There are difficulties in processing millets due to the laborious process involved; therefore, millets usage was restricted to farm households and rural laborers. The ICAR-IIMR successfully developed a value chain model to avoid the drudgery through processing technologies. Indeed, processing plays a significant role in linking producers and consumers by creating demand for millet cultivation, which was in danger of becoming a museum crop. Public and privately funded institutions and government bodies should popularize and brand millet products, and include them in public-funded schemes. This chapter will briefly discuss the difficulties in millet processing, and their status.
