Digital solutions to promote nutritious foods: Value chains for biofortified staples

Walton, Jenny; and Aytekin, Destan. 2020. Digital solutions to promote nutritious foods: Value chains for biofortified staples. UNSCN Nutrition 45: 122-124. https://www.unscn.org/uploads/web/news/UNSCN-Nutrition-45-WEB.pdf

Micronutrient (mineral and vitamin) deficiency is one of the three forms of malnutrition, alongside overweight or obesity and undernutrition. It affects more than 2 billion people globally, causing health problems, reducing productivity and curtailing income at individual and national level (IFPRI, 2016). Malnutrition, in all its forms, can be tackled with a healthy diet. Current food systems are unable to provide healthy diets for many, however, especially those in rural areas who cannot access or afford nutrient-dense foods and rely on staple crops for their calorific needs. The biofortification of staples commonly grown and consumed in lower- and middleincome countries (LMICs) with key micronutrients (such as vitamin A, iron and zinc) is a cost-effective and scalable strategy with proven potential to improve the micronutrient access of the population (Lockyer, White and Butriss, 2018; HarvestPlus, 2019; Bouis and Saltzman, 2017).