Chapter 9 - Mineral nutrition and crop quality

Abstract

Although the first reports linking mineral nutrition of crops to their quality date back to the 1970s, the effects of mineral nutrition on crop quality had not received the attention they deserved until the 2000s. In crop science, the concept of quality has a broad scope, and depending on the crop species as well as the intended use, different sets of physical and chemical parameters may be considered the most important components of overall quality. This chapter summarizes our current understanding of how mineral nutrition influences the technical (i.e., processing), sensory, and nutritional quality of crop plants and discusses the state-of-the-art advances in mineral nutrition aimed at improved sustainability, food safety, and nutrition security through improved crop quality. Considering both the actual and hidden hunger problems globally, the challenges imposed by climate change and other environmental issues, and the increasing awareness of the importance of nutrition for good health, research on mineral nutrition of crops is focusing on developing sustainable methods for simultaneously increasing productivity, profitability, and quality. However, the mineral nutrient requirements to achieve maximum yield may not always coincide with those to attain the best quality; similarly, higher quality does not always automatically translate into higher economic value.