1730. Towards a sustainable supply of underutilized cereals and beans to improve micronutrient supply in China
Invited abstract in session TA-16: Food and Nutrition Security - Crops and menus, stream Sustainable Food & Agroforestry.
Tuesday, 8:30-10:00Room: Esther Simpson 2.07
Authors (first author is the speaker)
| 1. | Yijun Li
|
| Operations Research and Logistics, Wageningen University | |
| 2. | J.C. Gerdessen
|
| Operations Research and Logistics, Wageningen University | |
| 3. | Wopke van der Werf
|
| Centre for Crop Systems Analysis, Wageningen University and Research | |
| 4. | Anneleen Kuijsten
|
| Division of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University and Research | |
| 5. | Sander De Leeuw
|
| Wageningen University & Research | |
| 6. | Wen-Feng Cong
|
| State Key Laboratory of Nutrient Use and Management, China Agricultural University | |
| 7. | Shenggen Fan
|
| Academy of Global Food Economics and Policy, China Agricultural University | |
| 8. | Tjeerd Jan Stomph
|
| Centre for Crop Systems Analysis, Wageningen University and Research |
Abstract
Rice and wheat provide the bulk of calories in Chinese diets. However, the food products based on these cereals are low in most macro- and micronutrients. Greater use of nutrient-rich underutilized cereals and beans (UCBs) (e.g., millet, sorghum, beans) could improve nutrition. Moreover, due to less intensive cultivation methods, these food crops have generally lower environmental impact. Here, we explore how reallocating rice and wheat areas to UCBs could balance nutrient supply and improve environmental sustainability in China. Using multi-objective optimization, we found that reallocating rice and wheat areas to UCBs would improve the nutrient supply of iron by 23%-52%, of dietary fiber by 11%-46%, while selenium had only small gains (1%-4%) across the tested scenarios. The combined strategy of reallocating areas and increasing the use of unrefined rice and wheat led to the greatest improvements in the supply of all nutrients analyzed. To achieve these benefits, 7.2 million hectares of rice and 0.3 million hectares of wheat areas would be reallocated to sorghum (+4.6 million ha), millet (+2.1 million ha), and beans (+0.9 million ha), primarily in Northeast China and Inner Mongolia. Reallocating areas among crops and promoting healthier diets with more UCBs and whole grains would unlock the potential of UCBs to improve human nutrition and environmental sustainability.
Keywords
- OR in Agriculture
- Multi-Objective Decision Making
- OR in Sustainability
Status: accepted
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