Ouagadougou. Cira Mahingou is the local name for the type of red rice grown in Burkina Faso mainly by women, in the Comoé province, in the southwest of the country. This type of rice belongs to the Oriza glabérrima species and is characterised by small grains and red colour. In Southwestern Burkina Faso the cultivation of red rice is anchored to local traditions. There is no meal celebrating a christening, wedding or funeral in which Cira Mahingou rice is not served. However, many villages have abandoned this practice for the more productive and common white rice. The risk of extinction of the Cira Mahingou is real. For many years, Piedmont Region, in collaboration with the COP, Coldiretti Piedmont, the Province of Vercelli, is committed to the South-West of Burkina Faso, alongside AGEREF, to various initiatives supporting local development, the environment, and local biodiversity, as well as the strengthening the production chain of Cira Mahingou rice. In 2015, thanks to the support of the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity, red rice has been included in the catalogue of the Ark of Taste among the typical products of the place and at risk of extinction. Yesterday, the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity and Piedmont Region have announced the establishment of a Slow Food Protection for Red Rice grown in Comoé. (9Colonne)