Nutrition-sensitive agriculture
This issue of Rural21 focuses on the concept of nutrition-sensitive agriculture. The concept of “nutrition-sensitive agriculture” sets out from the assumption that agriculture has a role in providing food security – which means access for all people at all times to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. However, judging from the amount of chronically hungry and micronutrient malnutrition sufferers, it would appear that agriculture is not fulfilling this role, or at least not doing so adequately. How can this be remedied? This issue of Rural21 shows how closely agriculture, nutrition and health are linked and takes a look at the various entry-points for improving nutrition through agriculture: from the choice of adequate seed systems and breeding programmes through agricultural policy interventions to promoting market access, production diversification and better functioning value chains to capacity building, nutrition education and gender equality. The issue also contains an article on the SUN movement and the importance of pulses.