The color of the sorghum's pericarp, or outer skin, is usually colorless, white or lemon yellow. Insect attack, to which sorghum is vulnerable, or deterioration can change its color. Reactions from the plant can produce chemicals that stain the pericarp.
Sorghum starch and oil, two of the principal extracts of the plant, are similar to corn starch and oil. Sorghum starch is high in polyphenol, an organic chemical that needs to be removed, usually through bleaching, before the starch can be used. The chemical composition of the plant is such that recovering the starch requires more energy than some other plants.
Sorghum is a heat-tolerant and drought-resistant plant, making it a good choice for parts of the world with arid and semi-arid soils. Africa and India have large sorghum-growing areas. Along with pigeon pea and other crops, sorghum is a key crop studied by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). Long roots help sorghum find any moisture in the soil while its leaves lose less water loss than some other crops.
According to field crop experts D. A. Sleper and John Milton Poehlman, sorghum is vulnerable to several diseases, including maize dwarf mosaic (MDM) which produces mottling, stunted growth and delayed maturation.
One pest that preys on sorghum is known as the sorghum midge. It lays its eggs inside the flowers, and when they develop into larvae, they feed on the seeds of the sorghum. Sorghum's lack of resistance to diseases and pests has restricted its commercial potential.