Articles
Who is fortunate enough to eat all their fruits and veggies? Closing the fruit and vegetable gap: an analysis of investment in horticulture crops to ensure health, social, and environmental equity
Article number
1407_3
Pages
15 – 24
Language
English
Abstract
Across the globe almost every government nutrition guideline, from the United States of America to Benin, to Japan and Lebanon recommends a significant portion of dietary intake to be fruits and vegetables.
Not surprisingly, research consistently shows the importance of these crops in addressing undernutrition, obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies.
However, less than 10% of governments and private foundations are investing in horticulture and less than 15% of the world’s arable land is under fruit and vegetable production, leaving a 74% gap globally to meet the recommended fruit and vegetable intake for healthy diets.
Right now, there are not enough fruits and vegetable for everyone.
In the next ten years, will we as a society choose to provide healthful crops for all? In addition to human health, research in the past decade has shown that fruits and vegetables can increase income and financial resilience, mitigate climate change and increase biodiversity, and even make you happier.
However, national governments, private industry and foundations are leaving behind these important crops.
As a result of inequitable investments, advances in technology almost exclusively for commodity crops has relatively increased the price of horticulture crops making them even less attainable for vulnerable communities.
Even small technological improvements for fruits and vegetables could impact the 40-50% food loss within these crops, a critical financial and nutritional issue in the global South.
Moving from feeding to nourishing a growing population is paramount to global food security and resilience.
Merely staying alive is not the goal of food security and without access to a colorful plate, children will continue to be malnourished and stuck in generational poverty.
Further, horticulture offers a significant tool to address financial resilience, environmental goals, and avenues for youth and women engagement.
Addressing the challenges and harnessing the potential of fruits and vegetables will require investment in technical capacity building, but also sweeping policy reforms to provide resources and space for “specialty crops” to grow, and to support behavior change through innovative nutrition education, youth engagement, and public information campaigns.
This paper reviews literature over the past ten years on the potential impacts of horticulture in health, financial resilience, and environmental well-being, and examines a future world if nothing is done to address the imbalance of investment in these crops.
We also lay forth five critical areas of investment and policy change to be made in the next 10 years to successfully close the fruit and vegetable gap.
Not surprisingly, research consistently shows the importance of these crops in addressing undernutrition, obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies.
However, less than 10% of governments and private foundations are investing in horticulture and less than 15% of the world’s arable land is under fruit and vegetable production, leaving a 74% gap globally to meet the recommended fruit and vegetable intake for healthy diets.
Right now, there are not enough fruits and vegetable for everyone.
In the next ten years, will we as a society choose to provide healthful crops for all? In addition to human health, research in the past decade has shown that fruits and vegetables can increase income and financial resilience, mitigate climate change and increase biodiversity, and even make you happier.
However, national governments, private industry and foundations are leaving behind these important crops.
As a result of inequitable investments, advances in technology almost exclusively for commodity crops has relatively increased the price of horticulture crops making them even less attainable for vulnerable communities.
Even small technological improvements for fruits and vegetables could impact the 40-50% food loss within these crops, a critical financial and nutritional issue in the global South.
Moving from feeding to nourishing a growing population is paramount to global food security and resilience.
Merely staying alive is not the goal of food security and without access to a colorful plate, children will continue to be malnourished and stuck in generational poverty.
Further, horticulture offers a significant tool to address financial resilience, environmental goals, and avenues for youth and women engagement.
Addressing the challenges and harnessing the potential of fruits and vegetables will require investment in technical capacity building, but also sweeping policy reforms to provide resources and space for “specialty crops” to grow, and to support behavior change through innovative nutrition education, youth engagement, and public information campaigns.
This paper reviews literature over the past ten years on the potential impacts of horticulture in health, financial resilience, and environmental well-being, and examines a future world if nothing is done to address the imbalance of investment in these crops.
We also lay forth five critical areas of investment and policy change to be made in the next 10 years to successfully close the fruit and vegetable gap.
Authors
E. McGuire, R. Jarman, E. Mitcham
Keywords
micronutrient deficiency, nutritional security, global south, research investment
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