**1. Introduction**

Cassava (*Manihot esculenta*), a shrub that could survive up to 3 years or more is planted mainly in tropic and the sub-tropic regions of the world. It is a food crop cultivated for the consumption of its roots (**Figures 1** and **2**) and other various end products. Cassava is a very important staple crop in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Due to its low cold tolerant nature, it does not do well in temperate regions of the world. It is a crop cultivated by majority of resource-poor farm families. Cassava is a crop that can withstand vagaries of weather condition; it can survive in a poor environment where other crops could hardly survive. It can survive in an acidic soil where other crops could hardly survive. There is a mutual relationship between cassava root and soil fungi which enable it to take phosphorus and other micronutrients from the surroundings. The whitish liquid (hydrogen cyanide) from cassava is deadly *Tropical Plant Species and Technological Interventions for Improvement*

**Figure 1.** *A typical cassava farm/plant/root.*

**Figure 2.** *Cassava root and a leaf.*

to both human and livestock. And as such it must be fermented and properly drained before fed to livestock or consume by man. Cassava maximizes available soil moisture content. Also, it is hardy and resistant to common pests and diseases of crops. With limited inputs, farmers can achieve a lot in term of output. The root is about 65–70% water but when processed, the dry matter could be as much as 3350 kg per tonne depending on the cultivar. It is a common staple food that could be afforded by the poor almost everywhere around the globe because it is relatively cheap. It is better harvested any moment from 6 month when it is to be consumed as food. The longer it stays in the soil the higher the starch concentration. It implies that those who cultivate it solely for starch would get more when it stays longer in the soil before harvesting.

Cassava is very rich in carbohydrate, and the calorie is high. It is energy given food which seriously help to mitigate the incidence of famine among the rural poor in sub-Sahara Africa and other places where it is cultivated. Also, cassava is rich in vitamin C, thiamine, riboflavin and niacin [1]. It is normally peeled and cooked to remove the cyanide acid.

The cyanide gas is volatile and would escape in the course of processing, making it and its bye-products fit for consumption. Relatedly, cassava mash is processed (by *Cassava Production Enterprise in the Tropics DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104677*

drying, roasting or boiling) into coarse flour and other food products. Furthermore, cassava could be cultivated for the sole purpose of harvesting its leaf (**Figure 3**).

According to [2] the leaf contain about 27% protein when dried. Both the leaves and the roots can be fed to livestock, and the stem could serve as firewood. Also, starch, which is one of the by-products of cassava serves as raw materials in food manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, textiles, plywood, paper and adhesives, and for the production of ethanol.
