No single intervention will solve the micronutrient malnutrition problem. The permanent solution to micronutrient malnutrition in developing countries is a diverse diets that includes pulses, fruits, vegetables, fish, and animal products. For the poor, this may take decades to realize. By providing some of the recommended daily allowance for micronutrients, biofortified crops can be effective in reducing malnutrition due to micronutrient deficiencies.

Biofortification has three key advantages:

Biofortification is Sustainable
By improving the nutritional content of the staple foods that poor people already eat, biofortification can be a sustainable method to deliver micronutrients to reduce malnutrition using familiar foods.

Biofortification is Targeted
Biofortification is an especially effective means of reducing malnutrition in rural areas, where about 75% of the poor live, and where they have limited access to supplements, commercially marketed fortified foods, or other urban-based interventions.

Biofortification is Cost-Effective
Unlike the recurring costs of traditional supplementation and fortification programs, a one-time investment in a biofortified crop can generate new varieties for farmers to grow for years to come, in many different countries. It is this multiplier aspect of biofortification, across time and distance that makes it so cost-effective an investment. There will be some recurrent expenditures for monitoring and maintaining high-micronutrient traits in crops, but these costs will be relatively low. Because of its cost-effectiveness, the 2008 Copenhagen Consensus listed biofortification as one of its top five solutions to global challenges.

How much can US$75 million buy?