Expanding our food supply: underutilized resources and resilient processing technologies

Abstract

Many underutilized food resources have been traditionally used by regional and poor communities. The history of their consumption makes them potential new food sources for incorporation into the wider food supply. The ability to tap the potential of undervalued and underutilized food sources will reduce the world's reliance on a limited number of food sources and improve food security and sustainability. The expansion of the food diversity of the food supply to include underutilized food resources will require overcoming challenges in the efficient and profitable production of the raw material, application of suitable postharvest handling procedures to maintain the quality of perishable produce, and the use of appropriate traditional and emerging food processing technologies for conversion of the raw material into safe, nutritious and consumer-acceptable foods. Improvement of food processing technologies, particularly resource-efficient resilient food processes, are required to ensure the safety, quality and functionality of the whole food or extracts, and to develop ingredient formulations containing new foods for manufacture of consumer food products. Factors that help facilitate the social acceptance of new underutilized foods include increasing consumer knowledge and understanding of the contribution of new underutilized food resources to diet diversity for good nutrition, confidence in the safety and value of new foods, and their low environmental impact and importance for future sustainable food. The introduction of new underutilized food resources will increasingly require collaboration along the whole food value chain, including support from government and industry. © 2024 The Author(s). Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.