Potential of underutilised crops to introduce nutritional diversity and achieve zero hunger

Title	Potential of underutilised crops to introduce nutritional diversity and achieve zero hunger
Authors	Roshan Kumar Singh, Nese Sreenivasulu, Manoj Prasad
Magazine	Functional & Integrative Genomics
Date	09/08/2022
DOI	10.1007/s10142-022-00898-w
Introduction	Underutilised crops represent a genetically diverse group of plants, many of which were historically consumed for their significant nutritional value. Despite an estimated 80,000 plant species used by humans for various purposes, including food, and over 25,000 being edible, only about 30 species are widely cultivated today. A mere six crops—rice, wheat, maize, potato, soybean, and sugarcane—supply over 75% of global plant-derived energy. While the Green Revolution significantly reduced hunger, it also led to a decline in crop diversity. This narrowing of crop genetic bases, combined with processed food consumption and sedentary lifestyles, contributes to a dual burden of malnutrition affecting nearly 2 billion people and obesity/non-communicable diseases impacting another 1.9 billion. The shift towards high-caloric yield crops resulted in the neglect of super-nutrient crops and knowledge about native species adapted to marginal environments. Underutilised crops are classified into pseudocereals and millets, grain legumes, roots and tubers, leafy vegetables, and fruits. Many, such as broomcorn and foxtail millet, possess ancient cultivation histories, and some, such as bambara groundnut, exhibit adaptability and soil enrichment capabilities. These crops are rich in micronutrients, dietary fibre, resistant starch, protein, and bioactives, with low glycaemic index properties, and are well-suited to diverse agro-climates. However, their limited yields and insufficient policy support for value chain integration have impeded their widespread adoption, leading to genetic erosion.
Quote	Roshan Kumar Singh, Nese Sreenivasulu and Manoj Prasad. Potential of underutilised crops to introduce the nutritional diversity and achieve zero hunger. Funct. Integr. Genomics. 2022. DOI: 10.1007/s10142-022-00898-w
Element	Calcium (Ca) , Potassium (K) , Magnesium (Mg) , Zinc (Zn) , Copper (Cu) , Manganese (Mn) , Phosphorus (P) , Nitrogen (N)
Industry	Agriculture , Research & Laboratory