FFAR Harvest for Health Breakthrough Crop Challenge

Challenge funding to develop a predictive model that can screen underutilised crops to determine a crop’s usefulness as a source of functional ingredients or nutrients.

Established by the US Federal Government in 2014, the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) funds innovative agricultural research and invests in the scientific workforce to address food and agriculture challenges.

FFAR’s Harvest for Health Breakthrough Crop Challenge Request for Proposals seeks to develop a predictive model that can screen underutilised crops to determine a crop’s usefulness as a source of functional ingredients or nutrients.

Of more than 50,000 known edible plant species, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that only three crops (rice, wheat and maize) account for two-thirds of the world’s food supply. As a result, many nutritious, resilient crops remain underutilised, contributing to poor dietary diversity and health outcomes.

FFAR has partnered with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) to launch the Harvest for Health initiative to accelerate the development of underutilised crops, increasing the diversity of foods in the marketplace. The model developed through this initiative will predict the potential of underutilised crops as sources of functional and nutritious ingredients that could replace, complement or aid in reformulating existing food products or developing new ones.

Underutilised crops can help ensure nutritional security in the face of climate change and provide diverse economic opportunities to growers. Additionally, consumers are increasingly seeking healthier, sustainable food products and global food experiences. Introducing new and exciting nutritious foods with various tastes and flavours will expand the food and agriculture industry’s consumer base and contribute to the health and sustainability of the food system.

While underutilised crops have incredible functional and nutritional potential, the development of such crops for consumption or use in other products is prohibitively expensive and time-intensive. To attract more private sector investment in underutilised crop development, Harvest for Health has launched this Breakthrough Crop Challenge to develop a predictive model that can screen underutilised crops to determine a crop’s usefulness as a source of functional ingredients or nutrients.

Predictive models are required to identify crops with market potential as a source of one or more of the following functional ingredients:

• Thickeners, emulsifiers and stabilisers
• Bulking agents
• Taste and flavour enhancers
• High nutrient density (specific nutrients to be proposed by applicants)

Proposed models will be assessed and prioritised based on the number of functionalities addressed and the accuracy of their predictive abilities.