Status of Underutilised Crops in South Africa: Opportunities for Developing Research Capacity

Tafadzwanashe Mabhaudhi,Albert Modi,Vimbayi Chimonyo

doi:10.3390/su9091569

Abstract

Underutilised crops represent an important component of agro-biodiversity with potential to contribute to climate change adaptation, food security and sovereignty in poor rural areas. However, despite emerging research interest, they continue to occupy the peripheries of mainstream agriculture. There is a need to consolidate the gains made and propose a coherent strategy for translating underutilised crops into mainstream agriculture. The status of underutilised crops in South Africa (past, present and on-going research) was reviewed with a view to identifying existing gaps, opportunities and challenges for developing future research capacity. The review confirmed that several underutilised crops are drought tolerant, adapted to low levels of water use and thus suitable for cultivation in most marginal production areas typical of semi-arid and arid cropping systems. In addition, several are nutrient dense and could be used to improve dietary diversity among poor rural people. These characteristics make them ideal for inclusion in climate change adaptation and promotion of food sovereignty. There is need for a paradigm shift away from practices that have promoted a few major crops to an agro-ecology based land use classification system that recognises diversity and strengthens food networks. There is a need to identify those underutilised crops that show the greatest potential for success and can be fitted into semi-arid and arid cropping systems and prioritise them for future research, development and innovation.

Highlights

Low and variable rainfall patterns in South Africa threaten the viability and sustainability of rural food systems, threatening food and nutrition security, as well as food sovereignty, in poor rural households
Emphasis was placed on use of literature from South Africa, with limited comparisons to international literature; this allowed for an assessment of local knowledge relative to international knowledge on neglected and underutilised crop species (NUS)
Despite major strides in underutilised crops research, they remain marginalised in mainstream agriculture

Summary

Introduction

Low and variable rainfall patterns in South Africa threaten the viability and sustainability of rural food systems, threatening food and nutrition security, as well as food sovereignty, in poor rural households. The potential of underutilised crops to contribute under such conditions has been highlighted in several publications [1,2,3,4]. Despite reports of their potential and emerging interest on underutilised crops, research on them remains scant. Some of these underutilised crops would be ideal for promotion during periods of drought since research has shown that they require less water [1]. Most underutilised crops possess attributes that make them ideal for production under low input agricultural systems and in marginal production areas, which typify South Africa’s rural landscape. Given the current climate change for South Africa underutilised crops become an important resource for climate change adaptation. A paucity of information describing their agronomy, water use and lack of production guidelines have previously been cited as bottlenecks to their promotion

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