Improving nutritional value of staple foods

Growing high-nutrient food types

Description

Improving the nutritional value of staple foods involves enhancing the content and bioavailability of essential nutrients—such as vitamins, minerals, and proteins—in widely consumed crops and food products. This strategy addresses malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies by employing methods like biofortification, food fortification, and improved processing techniques. Its practical intent is to deliver better nutrition to large populations, particularly vulnerable groups, through accessible, affordable, and culturally acceptable dietary staples.

Implementation

As an addition to the approach of distributing vitamin pills and providing injections and food supplements, WHO has funded a food-based solution to the problem of micronutrient deficiencies. Plant scientists in a 15-nation consortium is involving several international crop improvement centres to develop the food-based solution to micronutrient malnutrition. The aim is to help the National Agricultural Research Programmes in developing countries to breed new varieties with higher micronutrient content. The first stage is screening seeds of many of the world's wheat, barley, maize and rice varieties for types with a higher content of deficient micronutrients such as iron, zinc, iodine and Vitamin A.