Is There Sufficient Local Evidence to Inform Biofortification Policies Against Micronutrient Deficiencies? A Global Concern for Food Security and Human Health

TL;DR

The paper finds that regions with the highest micronutrient deficiencies contribute little to biofortification research, suggesting a need for more local evidence in these areas.

Contribution

The study reveals a mismatch between global micronutrient burdens and the geographic distribution of biofortification research output.

Findings

Most biofortification research comes from high- and middle-income countries, not from regions with the highest nutritional burdens.

Countries with severe micronutrient deficiencies often have minimal scientific output on biofortification.

The mismatch suggests a need to strengthen research in high-burden regions to better inform policy.

Abstract

Micronutrient deficiencies remain a persistent challenge to global health and food security, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where evidence-based strategies are urgently needed. Biofortification of staple crops has been promoted as a complementary intervention to supplementation and food fortification, but its effective implementation requires locally relevant studies. Such evidence is essential because the performance and adoption of biofortified crops depend on context-specific factors, including crop varieties, soil micronutrient dynamics, dietary patterns, cultural acceptability, and bioavailability, which limit the transferability of findings across settings. This perspective examines whether countries with the highest micronutrient burdens generate sufficient local research to inform biofortification policy decisions. We conducted a bibliometric mapping of peer-reviewed literature indexed in Scopus and compared country-level publication counts with indicators of iodized salt coverage, zinc deficiency, and childhood anemia, which were selected because they are prioritized metrics in global health and food security. From 776 eligible articles, most publications originated from a small group of high- and middle-income countries, whereas regions facing the greatest nutritional burdens, including parts of Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, contributed little to the scientific output. Countries with low iodized-salt coverage, high zinc deficiency, or childhood anemia above 40% frequently showed zero or minimal publications. This misalignment suggests that countries facing the greatest nutritional vulnerabilities may be underrepresented in the indexed scientific literature. These findings highlight the value of further strengthening research participation and visibility in high-burden settings to ensure that the evidence base more accurately reflects global needs.

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