Maximizing the Nutritional Potential of Potato: the Case of Folate
2017
Goyer, Aymeric
Micronutrient malnutrition, also known as the hidden hunger, affects over two billion people worldwide. Potato is the third most consumed food crop in the world and is therefore a fundamental element of food security for millions of people. Increasing the amount of micronutrients in potatoes could help alleviate worldwide micronutrient malnutrition. Folate (or vitamin B₉) is an essential micronutrient in the human diet. Deficiencies in folate lead to serious, sometimes lethal, diseases. Unfortunately, folate intake remains suboptimal in both developing and developed regions of the world. This paper uses folate to illustrate various approaches that could be implemented to increase micronutrient content in potato. It provides a brief overview of recent analyses of folate content in diverse potato germplasm, of changes in folate content during tuber development, and of the effect of postharvest low-temperature storage of potato on folate content, and how an optimization of these different factors could lead to significant increases in folate intake from potato.
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