The conservation and sustainable use of tree biodiversity the range of variation found within and between tree species to support livelihoods and the environment is central to the Tree Productivity and Diversity research theme at World Agroforestry (ICRAF).
Indigenous, forgotten crops can help reverse Africa’s malnutrition and low consumption of fruit and vegetables that falls well below the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of 146 kilograms per year.
Africa has 22 percent of its population undernourished, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, which co-organized the panel, held 16 February 2021, online. Diversity is crucial for food and nutrition security, say researchers, yet there are huge gaps in knowledge of the many different types of indigenous fruit trees and vegetables, with only a few varieties in the market and others at the risk of extinction. Trees, shrubs and lianas contribute 71 percent of the global supply of fruit yet information about the majority of the fruit species remain unavailable in databases, such as the standard reference work,