Breeding Biofortified Millets for Nutritional Security (Sustainability Sciences in Asia and Africa)

This edited book focuses on millets and their nutritional breeding potentials for breeding product development and commercialization. Not all commercial millet varieties are high in nutrition. This book describes the importance of iron, zinc, calcium in human nutrition, high-throughput phenotyping methods, designing new product profiles, novel germplasm and varieties, genetics and genomics, and breeding approaches. The public awareness about biofortification science is very limited; thus, possible scale-up R4D is also discussed. An ever-growing population and climate vulnerability risk food and nutritional security in the global south, particularly in drylands. Micronutrient malnutrition has long been big challenge for public health and human development in Asia and Africa. More than 3 billion people cannot afford nutritious diets. Most vulnerable group is women and children below 5 years of age. Breeding staple food crops with enriched essential nutrients is a sustainable solution to populations that relies on cereal-based diets. Millets are a staple food in India and sub-Saharan Africa. Improving millet nutrition will enhance the next generation's health and productivity.
This book will serve as a scientific knowledge resource and reference for graduate students, researchers, and industreis other similar professionals to deep dive into growing biofortified millets.