Scientific Publication

Biofortification in Underutilized Staple Crops for Nutrition in Asia and Africa

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  • Iran
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, M Andersson, M Govindaraj, V Parminder, B Cherian, P Illona, S Magezi, J Mulambu et al., 'Biofortification in Underutilized Staple Crops for Nutrition in Asia and Africa', In Regional expert consultation on underutilized crops for food and nutritional security in Asia and the Pacific – Thematic, strategic papers and country status reports, Asia-Pacific Association for Agricultural Research Institutions , pp.70-81, Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI), 2018

Malnutrition is one of the biggest public health challenges of the century with about 2 billion peopleaffected by it globally. Biofortification is the process of breeding micronutrients traits into staple food crops,which is bioavailable to make a positive measurable impact to the population that eats such staples on adaily basis. It is a cost-effective, sustainable strategy and complementary in nature to the existing marketinterventions. Iron pearl millet, iron beans, vitamin A cassava and orange sweet potato can contribute toincrease household nutrition in the Asia and Africa. Over the years evidences gathered by partners in cropbreeding, nutrition studies and delivery experiences will help to build the foundation for scaling out further toreach millions who need the most