Micronutrient malnutrition arising from dietary deficiency of bioavailable minerals and vitamins affects more than half of the world?s population, especially women and preschool children. In particular, zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) deficiencies are a growing public health concern, especially in the developing world. Recent reports indicate that nearly 500,000 children under 5 years of age suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM) annually because of Zn and Fe deficiencies. In human, Zn and Fe deficiencies related problems is widespread; more than 30% of the world?s population may suffer from Zn deficiency and about 40% malnourished for Fe. Low dietary intake of Zn and Fe appears to be the major reason for the widespread prevalence of Fe and Zn deficiencies in human populations. In countries with a high incidence of micronutrient deficiencies, cereal-based foods represent the largest proportion of the daily diet. A new public health approach to alleviate deficiencies of these mineral nutrients in developing countries is through biofortification of staple food crops. Biofortification involves development of micronutrient-dense staple crops using the best traditional plant breeding approach. Since staple foods are predominant in the diet of the poor, this strategy targets low income populations. Once the biofortified cultivars are developed, recurrent costs are low and germplasm can be shared across international boundaries. Breeding crops with higher micronutrient content will have no adverse effects on yield potential. In fact, such strategies will enhance yield because mineral-packed seeds help the resulting plants resist diseases and other environmental stresses that affect yield. Moreover, a higher proportion of seedlings from mineral-packed seeds survive against the pre-emergence and establishment related stresses; their initial growth is rapid, which ultimately leads to higher yields. The HarvestPlus (www.harvestplus.org) initiative of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) has embarked upon plant breeding efforts aimed at developing biofortified varieties of major staple crops, including bread wheat (Triticumaestivum L.), to enhance concentrations of these essential micronutrients. The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is also working to develop and disseminate high-yielding, disease-resistant wheat varieties with significantly increased Zn and Fe concentrations; these efforts are initially targeted toward South Asia, where more than 26% of the population is Zn deficient.

Global Wheat Program

Text in English

INT2983|INT0610

CIMMYT Staff Publications Collection