Micronutrient deficiency affects all groups worldwide and is a major public health issue. It has devastating effects on all ages, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. It causes anemia, night blindness, increased mortality in children and pregnant women, osteoporosis in adults and rickets in children, lower infectious disease resistance, weariness, and cognitive impairment. Recent attention has focused on micronutrient deficits. Fortunately, these micronutrients are abundant in vegetables. Many African vegetables are endemic due to various weather variations. Diverse geographical areas on the continent allow for exotic and indigenous vegetable kinds. In Africa, many African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are grown and eaten. Exotic veggies are popular in cities, but rural Africans still prefer indigenous crops. Despite their availability, most of the indigenous vegetables are underutilised and have not been adequately explored due to the decreased attention to their production, consumption and utilization. Due to their diversity, they have a great potential to contribute to food security by providing nutrient rich healthy diets. They are rich in vitamins and minerals and hence make a potential source of micronutrients that can help reduce the reported deficiencies. This paper provides a literature review on the wide variety of underappreciated vegetables grown in Africa, their health benefits, and their potential to alleviate micronutrient shortages. It also investigates the barriers to increasing consumption and explores some of the strategies that have been employed to address these problems. Due to their significant role in ensuring food and nutrition security, along with their rich nutrient composition, there exists an urgent imperative to enhance public awareness regarding their consumption and the attainment of nutritional security.
| Published in | World Journal of Food Science and Technology (Volume 8, Issue 1) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11 |
| Page(s) | 1-13 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group |
African Leafy Vegetables (ALVs), Indigenous Leafy Vegetables (ILVs), Traditional Leafy Vegetables (TLVs), Orphan Vegetables, Micronutrients Deficiency, Underutilised Vegetables
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APA Style
Issa-Zacharia, A., Majaliwa, N. K., Nyamete, F. A., Chove, L. M. (2024). Diversity of Underutilised Vegetables in Africa and Their Potential in the Reduction of Micronutrient Deficiency: A Review. World Journal of Food Science and Technology, 8(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11
ACS Style
Issa-Zacharia, A.; Majaliwa, N. K.; Nyamete, F. A.; Chove, L. M. Diversity of Underutilised Vegetables in Africa and Their Potential in the Reduction of Micronutrient Deficiency: A Review. World J. Food Sci. Technol. 2024, 8(1), 1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11
AMA Style
Issa-Zacharia A, Majaliwa NK, Nyamete FA, Chove LM. Diversity of Underutilised Vegetables in Africa and Their Potential in the Reduction of Micronutrient Deficiency: A Review. World J Food Sci Technol. 2024;8(1):1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11
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Download@article{10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11,
author = {Abdulsudi Issa-Zacharia and Nuria Kudra Majaliwa and Frida Albinusi Nyamete and Lucy Mlipano Chove},
title = {Diversity of Underutilised Vegetables in Africa and Their Potential in the Reduction of Micronutrient Deficiency: A Review},
journal = {World Journal of Food Science and Technology},
volume = {8},
number = {1},
pages = {1-13},
doi = {10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.wjfst.20240801.11},
abstract = {Micronutrient deficiency affects all groups worldwide and is a major public health issue. It has devastating effects on all ages, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. It causes anemia, night blindness, increased mortality in children and pregnant women, osteoporosis in adults and rickets in children, lower infectious disease resistance, weariness, and cognitive impairment. Recent attention has focused on micronutrient deficits. Fortunately, these micronutrients are abundant in vegetables. Many African vegetables are endemic due to various weather variations. Diverse geographical areas on the continent allow for exotic and indigenous vegetable kinds. In Africa, many African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are grown and eaten. Exotic veggies are popular in cities, but rural Africans still prefer indigenous crops. Despite their availability, most of the indigenous vegetables are underutilised and have not been adequately explored due to the decreased attention to their production, consumption and utilization. Due to their diversity, they have a great potential to contribute to food security by providing nutrient rich healthy diets. They are rich in vitamins and minerals and hence make a potential source of micronutrients that can help reduce the reported deficiencies. This paper provides a literature review on the wide variety of underappreciated vegetables grown in Africa, their health benefits, and their potential to alleviate micronutrient shortages. It also investigates the barriers to increasing consumption and explores some of the strategies that have been employed to address these problems. Due to their significant role in ensuring food and nutrition security, along with their rich nutrient composition, there exists an urgent imperative to enhance public awareness regarding their consumption and the attainment of nutritional security.
},
year = {2024}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Diversity of Underutilised Vegetables in Africa and Their Potential in the Reduction of Micronutrient Deficiency: A Review AU - Abdulsudi Issa-Zacharia AU - Nuria Kudra Majaliwa AU - Frida Albinusi Nyamete AU - Lucy Mlipano Chove Y1 - 2024/01/11 PY - 2024 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11 DO - 10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11 T2 - World Journal of Food Science and Technology JF - World Journal of Food Science and Technology JO - World Journal of Food Science and Technology SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2637-6024 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjfst.20240801.11 AB - Micronutrient deficiency affects all groups worldwide and is a major public health issue. It has devastating effects on all ages, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. It causes anemia, night blindness, increased mortality in children and pregnant women, osteoporosis in adults and rickets in children, lower infectious disease resistance, weariness, and cognitive impairment. Recent attention has focused on micronutrient deficits. Fortunately, these micronutrients are abundant in vegetables. Many African vegetables are endemic due to various weather variations. Diverse geographical areas on the continent allow for exotic and indigenous vegetable kinds. In Africa, many African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are grown and eaten. Exotic veggies are popular in cities, but rural Africans still prefer indigenous crops. Despite their availability, most of the indigenous vegetables are underutilised and have not been adequately explored due to the decreased attention to their production, consumption and utilization. Due to their diversity, they have a great potential to contribute to food security by providing nutrient rich healthy diets. They are rich in vitamins and minerals and hence make a potential source of micronutrients that can help reduce the reported deficiencies. This paper provides a literature review on the wide variety of underappreciated vegetables grown in Africa, their health benefits, and their potential to alleviate micronutrient shortages. It also investigates the barriers to increasing consumption and explores some of the strategies that have been employed to address these problems. Due to their significant role in ensuring food and nutrition security, along with their rich nutrient composition, there exists an urgent imperative to enhance public awareness regarding their consumption and the attainment of nutritional security. VL - 8 IS - 1 ER -
Department of Food Science and Agro-Processing, School of Engineering and Technology, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Chuo Kikuu, Morogoro, Tanzania
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