PRESS RELEASE – Research paper on Africa’s ‘forgotten’ foods wins prestigious Cozzarelli Prize in Washington, DC

TAINAN CITY, TAIWAN and NAIROBI, KENYA (23 April 2024) — An international research team led by the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg), and including scientists from the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), has won the 2023 Cozzarelli Prize for an article on the potential of ‘forgotten’ food crops in sub-Saharan Africa to provide healthy diets in a changing climate.

The paper was one of six selected by the editorial board of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) – a prestigious scientific journal based in Washington, DC – to receive the annual award for scientific excellence and originality at a ceremony on 28 April 2024.

Papers were chosen from more than 3,000 open-access research articles that appeared in the journal last year and represent the six broadly defined classes under which the National Academy of Sciences is organized.

A Beninese farmer stands in his diversified farm field that includes Colocasia esculenta (taroyam), maize, Amaranthus spp. (amaranth), and Celosia argentea (celosia) within an agricultural landscape dominated by cassava.

The study – which was selected in the Applied Biological, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences category of the Cozzarelli Prize – also involved multidisciplinary scientists from the University of Abomey-Calavi (Benin), the National Taiwan University, and Scotland’s Rural College in Edinburgh.

The study used climate modelling to assess the potential of 138 traditional food plants that could diversify or replace staple crops, and identified 58 that are micronutrient-rich and are suitable for integration into cropping systems under current and projected climatic conditions. The authors concluded that diversifying food production in Africa with these neglected ‘opportunity crops’ improves both the dietary health and climate resilience of food systems in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Our study shows that in most locations where major staples are currently grown in sub-Saharan Africa, one or more forgotten food crops from different food groups will be suitable for cultivation under 2070 climate conditions – and can diversify major staples to support more nutrient-rich diets,” says Maarten van Zonneveld, head of genetic resources at WorldVeg in Taiwan.

The research was part of various initiatives that the study’s collaborating partners are involved in. WorldVeg is the only organization with a global mandate for vegetable research and development – including traditional crops – and works closely with the paper’s co-authors in Benin and Taiwan. CIFOR-ICRAF scientists were involved in the modelling and data analysis, and built on their rich experience with tree and shrub foods.

“Our results suggest that diversifying sub-Saharan African food production with forgotten food crops could improve climate resilience and dietary health,” says Stepha McMullin, a development specialist at CIFOR-ICRAF in Kenya. “But to successfully mainstream these foods, it is crucial that we work closely with both local producers and consumers. At CIFOR–ICRAF, we already work with rural communities in East and Southern Africa to do this, by designing and implementing locally tailored food tree portfolios.”

Recipients of the Cozzarelli Prize – which is named after former PNAS Editor-in-Chief Nicholas R. Cozzarelli – will be recognized at the awards ceremony during the annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences. Online registration is possible here.

Co-author quotes:

Maarten van Zonneveld, Head of Genetic Resources, World Vegetable Center, Taiwan

“Two thirds of the 58 selected crops are vegetables that are rich in vitamin A, folate, iron and zinc. Our study shows that in most locations where major staples are currently grown in sub-Saharan Africa, one or more forgotten food crops from different food groups will be suitable for cultivation under 2070 climate conditions – and can diversify major staples to support more nutrient-rich diets.”

Roeland Kindt, Senior Scientist, CIFOR-ICRAF, Kenya

“Climate adaptation strategies in the region to date have largely neglected the potential of Africa’s ‘forgotten’ food crops, and we wanted to know more about what they have to offer as conditions change,” said co-author and CIFOR-ICRAF senior scientist Roeland Kindt. He also explained that climate modelling was done via the BiodiversityR package, widely used for community ecology and species distribution research.

Stepha McMullin, Development Specialist, CIFOR-ICRAF, Kenya

“Our results suggest that diversifying sub-Saharan African food production with forgotten food crops could improve climate resilience and dietary health, but to successfully mainstream these foods, it is crucial we work closely with both local producers and consumers. At CIFOR–ICRAF, we already work with rural communities in East and Southern Africa to do this, by designing and implementing locally-tailored food tree portfolios, and the African Orphan Crops Consortium was established to help meet producer and consumer needs.”

Enoch G. Achigan-Dako, Head, Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science Unit, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Republic of Benin.

“Our study is timely in informing policymakers and researchers on the use of Africa’s forgotten crops in the diversification and prioritization of food supply for healthy diets under a changing climate. With the support of the Taiwan Africa Vegetable Initiative, we have been able to upgrade our national vegetable germplasm collection called CalaviGen with better equipment and more seed stored. Our collection was enriched with close to 10,000 new accessions and will be a key resource for breeding, research, and promotion of the vegetable opportunity crops.”

Sognigbé N’Danikou, Scientist – Traditional African Vegetables, World Vegetable Center, Tanzania

“I see results from participatory trials across Africa using WorldVeg selections and improved varieties of amaranth, jute mallow, okra, spider plant and others. Since 2013, more than half a million seed samples of traditional vegetables have been distributed to farmers and schools across Sub-Saharan Africa. Farmers are really enthusiastic, and we see high rates of adoption. Importantly, also, there is increasing interest from local seed enterprises to scale seed supply of these crops, and several of these crops are also incorporated in the Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium for further scaling.”

Wei-hsun Hsieh, Department of Agronomy, National Taiwan University, Taiwan

“I am deeply honoured to be one of the co-authors of this research that underpins the value of cross-continental collaboration between Taiwan-based research and development organizations and African research teams.”

Yann-rong Lin, Department of Agronomy, National Taiwan University and Former Deputy Director General – Partnerships, World Vegetable Center, Taiwan

“With the support of the Taiwan Africa Vegetable Initiative and in response to a call for a global rescue plan for fruit and vegetable biodiversity, we work with the University of Abomey-Calavi in Benin and with partners in Tanzania, Madagascar and Eswatini to rescue, conserve, and use the seed of local vegetable varieties. This collection will provide a solid basis for vegetable breeding in sub-Saharan Africa and keep these varieties safeguarded for future generations.”

Ian Dawson, Senior Scientist, CIFOR-ICRAF, Kenya, and Reader, Scotland’s Rural College, UK

“It’s heartening to see this research on marginalized crops being recognized and celebrated. And what’s unusual about this research is that information on the nutritional value of crops was included in the analysis. The modelling we did, while a great start,  is of course only an initial step in supporting food system diversification, as many other considerations are needed to design future food systems and put these designs into practice.”