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Dec 31, 2025Keywords:
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Production and Essentials of Minor Root and Tuber Crops to Enhance Food Security in Nigeria
Abstract
Global food security relies disproportionately on a few staple crops, yet Nigeria's persistent food insecurity demands diversification into underexploited indigenous species. This paper examines the production, nutritional composition, medicinal properties, and food security potential of minor root and tuber crops cultivated in Nigeria, including taro (Colocasia esculenta), Hausa potato (Solenostemon rotundifolius), Livingstone potato (Plectranthus esculentus), Polynesian potato (Tacca leontopetaloides), yam bean (Pachyrrhizus erosus), Queensland arrowroot (Canna edulis), West Indian arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea), and ginger (Zingiber officinale). These crops demonstrate remarkable adaptation to marginal environments, tolerance of biotic and abiotic stresses, and the capacity to produce harvestable yields where conventional crops fail. They are rich in micronutrients, dietary fibre, antioxidants, and bioactive compounds with documented ethnopharmacological applications. Despite their contributions to household food security, dietary diversity, and rural livelihoods, these species remain neglected by research, policy, and commercial agriculture. Addressing Nigeria's food deficit and hidden hunger requires broadening the food basket through improved cultivation practices, value-added processing, market development, and integration into climate-smart agricultural systems. Mainstreaming minor root and tuber crops offers strategic pathways for sustainable food security, poverty alleviation, and economic diversification.
