An international team of scientists is calling for a global effort to rescue, conserve and make better use of vegetable biodiversity, warning that modern food systems are becoming increasingly dependent on a small number of widely grown vegetable crops.
In a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the researchers highlight spider plant in Africa, bitter gourd in Asia and slippery cabbage in the Pacific as examples of overlooked vegetable crops that could help improve diets and strengthen agriculture against climate change.
The researchers use the term vegetable biodiversity to describe the full range of vegetable species, traditional varieties and their wild relatives. The findings reinforce the case for Vegetables4Life, a global initiative led by WorldVeg and co-led by the Crop Trust to rescue, conserve and use vegetable biodiversity. Read more about how Vegetables4Life was conceived in The Bellagio effect: Global initiative for vegetable biodiversity takes root.
The paper’s findings come as people worldwide consume nearly 40% fewer vegetables than recommended by the World Health Organization, global production remains insufficient to meet recommended intake, and low vegetable consumption is among the five leading dietary risk factors contributing to the global burden of disease. The United Nations recently warned that more than one in three people cannot afford a healthy diet, highlighting the need to make foods such as vegetables more affordable and accessible.
But according to the researchers, simply producing more of today’s most common vegetables will not be enough. They argue that many traditional and underused vegetables are rich in vitamins and minerals, well adapted to local growing conditions and valued in local food cultures. Their diverse varieties and wild relatives also contain characteristics that can be used to develop vegetables better able to withstand heat, drought, pests and diseases.
“The solution isn’t simply to grow more vegetables – it’s also to grow more kinds of vegetables,” Dr. Maarten van Zonneveld, who led the research while Head of Genetic Resources at the World Vegetable Center, and who is now Head of Genebank and Biodiversity Science Goal leader at the International Potato Center.
“Much of the vegetable biodiversity we need is still out there – in traditional varieties and their wild relatives. The urgency is to conserve it properly so that we can use it wisely to diversify diets amid climate change.”
An overlooked resource
The researchers identify more than 1,480 edible vegetable species worldwide, though they say the true number is likely to be even higher. As described in the paper’s Figure 1, on Global Food Group Metrics (below), many are poorly researched and underused despite their importance in local diets and farming systems. This graphic is explained in detail in our story, Petal power: Striking infographic brings the world’s vegetable blind spots into focus.
The study highlights vegetables such as spider plant in Africa, bitter gourd in Asia, slippery cabbage in the Pacific, and the edible leaves of pumpkin, sweetpotato and cowpea. These and other underutilized vegetables like amaranth, jute mallow and African nightshade are naturally rich in vitamins and minerals, adapted to challenging growing conditions and valued in local food cultures, yet they receive only a tiny fraction of the research, breeding and conservation efforts devoted to globally traded vegetables and staple grains.
By showing which vegetables are most relevant to different regions and climate challenges, the list presented in the paper will help researchers, practitioners and policymakers identify priorities for conservation, breeding and wider use.
But the authors also warn that many of these resources are already disappearing. Studies from around the world have documented substantial declines in the range of traditional vegetable varieties grown over the past century, while almost one-quarter of assessed wild relatives of major vegetable crops are threatened with extinction.
“Vegetable biodiversity is one of the world’s greatest assets for improving diets and adapting agriculture to a changing climate,” said Dr. Colin Khoury, Global Conservation Lead at the Crop Trust. “But we’re losing it at exactly the time we need it most.”
He continued: “Conserving vegetable biodiversity isn’t just about protecting the past – it’s about securing more options for the future.”
Read more: Safeguarding traditional African vegetables: Landmark deposit at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault secures vital opportunity crops and Turning the tide on biodiversity loss: Africa charts a future for its forgotten vegetables
Caption: (Left to right) Africa’s Vegetable genebank in Tanzania, operated by WorldVeg, which conserves and makes available the largest collection of traditional African Vegetables on the continent, including many kinds of amaranth (center) and spider plant (right). Pics by Neil Palmer (WorldVeg).
The researchers argue that conserving vegetable biodiversity is not enough on its own. Protecting seeds in genebanks – such as the WorldVeg facilities in Taiwan and Tanzania – helps safeguard them against permanent loss; but sustainably improving nutrition also depends on ensuring vegetables – traditional and otherwise – continue to be improved by plant breeders, grown by farmers, sold in markets and eaten by consumers. As a result, they argue that the conservation and use of traditional and wild vegetables must go hand in hand.
They outline four priorities for governments, funders, and researchers:
- Secure vegetable biodiversity for the future by rescuing, conserving and restoring traditional vegetable varieties and their wild relatives.
- Use vegetable biodiversity to develop improved varieties by expanding research, breeding and access to diverse genetic resources.
- Promote vegetable biodiversity to diversify diets by increasing the production, availability and consumption of a wider range of vegetables.
- Embed vegetable biodiversity in policy by integrating it into agriculture, health, education, climate and biodiversity strategies.
Taken together, the researchers say these priorities would shift vegetable biodiversity from being an overlooked resource to a central part of efforts to improve diets, strengthen climate resilience and develop the vegetables needed now and into the future.
Key information:
- The world needs a much wider diversity of vegetables to improve diets and build more resilient food systems.
- Traditional vegetables and their wild relatives are an underused resource for improving nutrition and developing crops better able to cope with heat, drought, pests and diseases.
- More than 1,480 edible vegetable species exist worldwide, yet many remain poorly researched, underused and at risk of being lost.
- Conserving vegetable biodiversity alone is not enough – it must also be used by crop breeders, farmers and promoted among households and children to diversify diets.
- Coordinated global action is needed to rescue, conserve, use and promote vegetable biodiversity.
- Making vegetable biodiversity a central part of food systems could help tackle malnutrition, strengthen climate resilience and support the development of future vegetable varieties.
- The findings align closely with emerging international efforts such as Vegetables4Life, a global initiative led by WorldVeg and co-led by the Global Crop Diversity Trust to rescue, conserve and use vegetable diversity in biodiversity and malnutrition hotspots worldwide.
- Reversing vegetable biodiversity loss to diversify diets brought together researchers from/representing World Vegetable Center, the Crop Trust, the International Potato Center (CIP), Centre for Pacific Crops and Trees (Pacific Community), Wageningen University & Research, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Food Security Leadership Council, New York Botanical Garden, and the CGIAR Genebank Accelerator.
- The Taiwan Ministry of Agriculture supported the research through the Vegetable Innovation Project of World Vegetable Center – Low Emission Production and Biodiversity. The CGIAR Food Frontiers & Security Science Program supported the article processing charges. The NL-CGIAR Senior Expert Programme II, supported author M. Eric Schranz.
Read more on this issue from WorldVeg:
- Launching Vegetables4Life: Bold USD $300m fundraising drive will target vegetable biodiversity hotspots worldwide
- Safeguarding traditional African vegetables: Landmark deposit at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault secures vital opportunity crops
- A Global system at work: Genebanks link across continents to protect seed collections
- Tackling the crisis of neglect: Scientists call for urgent action on traditional African vegetables
- The Bellagio effect: Global initiative for vegetable biodiversity takes root
- Crop diversity as biological insurance: Now is the time for genebank funders to step up, not step back
- From school gardens to seed guardians: Pupils nurture Traditional African Vegetables in Kenya
This work aligns with the WorldVeg Action Areas on Healthy Diets and Climate Resilience, outlined in the WorldVeg Global Strategy 2026-2033.
