About us

Out of around 6000 plants historically cultivated for food, six now dominate global food production as “major crops”. Largely absent from global food trade and development initiatives, the forgotten majority of crop plants are a safety-net for the livelihoods across rural and urban populations across the world. Most “forgotten crops” are not traded internationally, thus attracting little attention from the global scientific community. Some have been formally recognized as “orphan crops”, or “under-researched” but still attract limited scientific research, especially in areas that require long-term effort to bear fruit. Plant breeding programs are especially under-developed for these crops. As we face the present and future challenges of achieving food security, forgotten crops can play a vital role as nutritious food sources for poor farmers and urban communities, and can help consumers around the world enjoy diverse diets and rich culinary cultures that contribute to societal wellbeing.  Forgotten and orphan crops can also help make cropping systems and human communities more resilient to the external shocks generated by climate change, at all geographical scales. Concerted efforts by academia, industry, and society are urgently needed to advance research and development for all major, under-researched, and forgotten crops so that food security is achieved, and livelihoods are improved.