Photo: Lilian Liang/PlusNews Finding their place in fields, markets and meal times (file photo)
DAKAR, 1 April 2010 (IRIN) - Rice may still be a symbol of food security across Africa, but the cereal does little to boost nutrition, unlike vegetables, according to the India-based International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
Vegetables should have their place in the fields and at the table alongside cereals commonly grown in arid countries, vegetable breeding expert Sanjeet Kumar with ICRISAT and the Taiwan-based AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center (formerly known as the Asian Vegetable Research and Development Center) told IRIN.
"While rice and other cereals can cut hunger, vegetables bolster nutritional security and take up less land to grow."
"Rice is a poor source of essential vitamins and minerals, either because these compounds are not present in rice, especially when it is polished [white], or they cannot be absorbed by humans," UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) nutrition specialist Roland Kupka told IRIN. "Diets that are primarily based on polished rice may thus lead to deficiencies in iron, zinc, vitamin A, and thiamine [B1] deficiency,