Abstract
Micronutrient malnutrition is a global health challenge affecting almost half of the global population, causing poor physical and mental development of children and a wide range of illnesses. It is most prevalent in young girls, women, and pre-school children who are suffering particularly from the low consumption of vitamins and micronutrients. Given this global challenge, biofortification has proven to be a promising and economical approach to increase the concentration of essential micronutrients in edible portions of staple crops. Produce quality and micronutrient content can be further enhanced with the use of micronutrient fertilizers. Especially developing countries with a high percentage of malnourished populations are attracted to this integrated biofortification, combining modern agronomic interventions and genetic improvement of food crops. Consequently, maize, rice, wheat, beans, pearl millet, sweet potato, and cassava have all been biofortified with increased concentrations of Fe, Zn, or provitamin A in various developing countries. Today, there are several large-scale success stories in Africa and Asia that support the research and development of biofortified crops. In this review, we summarized what has been achieved to date and how edible crops can be further improved by integrating agronomic and genetic strategies to upgrade the nutritional status of children and adults around the world.
Highlights
Mineral micronutrient deficiencies in humans are widespread globally, especially among women and children
Micronutrients are needed in the human diet in minute quantities, yet it is estimated that over 3 billion people suffer from micronutrient deficiencies, resulting in deleterious impacts on human health [1,2,3,4,5]
In African countries, cassava has been utilized for mitigation of beta carotene deficiency by the partnership of Harvest plus with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), and they are utilizing beta-carotene biofortified cassava for mitigation of vitamin
Summary
Mineral micronutrient deficiencies in humans are widespread globally, especially among women and children. 5 years are affected byearly the lack of micronutrients due need during the developmental as pregnancy and childhood [17,18] Another problem is Folate deficiency, causing problems phases especially women, increased need during the developmental suchinaspregnant pregnancy and early chil and developing countries with problem poor quality food are more prone to this deficiency [19]. Along with fortification of food during processing, increased diversity of food including staple grains, fruits, and vegetables can provide a balanced and appropriate combination of macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals Different food groups, their suitability for fortification along with successful examples are listed, poor people in developing countries often have financial or agricultural limitations to access them. Depending on the crop and the soil where it is grown, a combination with the application of micronutrient fertilizer might be necessary to maintain soil fertility and achieve sufficient micronutrient concentrations in the produce
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