Matters of the desert: A perspective on achieving food and nutrition security through plants of the (semi) arid regions

The semi- and arid agro-climatic zones of India harbor numerous plants, many occurring as wild and neglected inhabitants of the desert landscape, that bear edible fruits. They are capable of growing in extreme temperatures, on marginal lands and water-scarce conditions. These also represent sustainable food sources for the future. The benefits that they confer to the ecosystems and communities can be manifold: (a) as influencers of agricultural productivity for other crops (like cereals) in agroforestry systems; (b) as balanced functional foods by way of providing high quality protein, macro- and micronutrients to target protein-calorie malnutrition; (c) as sources of antioxidants, nutraceuticals and bioactive leads to target the ever-increasing burden of non-communicable diseases like obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disorders. A few representative examples of the promising desert plants include: Prosopis cineraria, Acacia senegal, Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (cluster bean), Capparis decidua, Ziziphus mauritiana (Indian jujube), Cordia dichotoma, Leptadenia pyrotechnica, Calligonum polygonoides, and millets. Even though the potential of such plants has been recognized by food and agricultural scientists, research gaps like low yield, disease vulnerability, presence of anti-nutrients, unavailable genomic sequence information, exclusion from the formal food value chain, and poor marketing strategies, prevent the realization of their full potential. The current perspective looks at the promise afforded by underutilized plants of the Indian desert regions in ensuring food and nutrition security as well as the possibility of developing value-added agri-food products from them. The complementary role that food processing technologies can play in achieving the desired goals would also be highlighted so as to transform the desert plants from traditional to 'climate-smart' future foods.