Climate change is not only reducing agricultural productivity but is also diminishing the nutritional quality of staple food crops, prompting scientists to call for the development of climate resilient and nutrient-rich crop varieties to safeguard global food and nutrition security.
The warning is contained in a new review published in the journal, Nature, by researchers from Ghent University and several international research institutions, who examined how advances in genetic technologies could help produce crops capable of delivering higher yields, improved nutrition and greater resilience to climate-related stresses.
According to the researchers, climate change is compounding an already serious global nutrition challenge, with more than two billion people worldwide suffering from deficiencies in essential vitamins and minerals despite consuming enough calories to meet their daily energy needs.
The condition, commonly referred to as hidden hunger, occurs when diets provide sufficient calories but lack the nutrients required for healthy growth, development and overall well-being.
The review noted that staple crops such as rice, wheat, maize, potatoes and cassava form the foundation of diets for billions of people around the world, but many of these crops naturally contain insufficient levels of essential vitamins and minerals needed to prevent malnutrition.
Researchers warned that climate change is further reducing the nutritional value of several major food crops, making it increasingly difficult to address global micronutrient deficiencies through existing food systems.
Lead author and Professor at Ghent University, Dominique Van Der Straeten, said future agricultural systems must simultaneously achieve three objectives by increasing food production, improving nutritional quality and strengthening crop resilience against the impacts of climate change.
He explained that future crop varieties should combine higher yields with improved levels of essential nutrients while also being better equipped to withstand drought, extreme heat, soil salinity and other environmental pressures associated with global warming.
The review also highlighted the contribution of Emeritus Professor Marc Van Montagu, a pioneer in plant biotechnology, who co-authored the study alongside other international experts.
According to the researchers, recent advances in genetic technologies, particularly CRISPR-based genome editing, offer promising opportunities to improve the nutritional composition of crops by enabling scientists to make precise modifications to plant traits responsible for vitamin, mineral and stress tolerance characteristics.
However, the authors stressed that no single scientific approach would be sufficient to overcome the complex challenges posed by climate change and global malnutrition.
Instead, they recommended integrating conventional plant breeding, modern biotechnology and genome-editing techniques to develop crop varieties suited to different climatic conditions, farming systems and regional nutritional needs.
The researchers argued that combining multiple scientific approaches would provide the greatest opportunity to produce crops capable of meeting the food demands of a growing global population while maintaining nutritional quality under changing climatic conditions.
The review further emphasised that discussions on food security should move beyond simply ensuring adequate food supplies and instead place greater emphasis on improving the nutritional value of crops consumed by billions of people worldwide.
According to the study, producing sufficient calories alone will not guarantee healthier populations if staple foods continue to lose important vitamins and minerals as temperatures rise and environmental conditions become more challenging.
