The Diversity of Food Crop Origins

Globalization’s influences on the food supply affect consumers around the world, and new research gives insights into how by examining the origin of food crops and where they are now eaten and produced around the world.

Researchers from a number of agriculture-related institutions and universities determined the origins—what they call primary regions of diversity—of crops that are part of the food supply and agricultural production systems in countries worldwide, noting that some regions have more crop diversity than others (Khoury et al. 2016). Then they looked at which countries use crops (for consumption, production, or both) that originated in countries other than their own and how this usage has changed over the past 50 years. The results of their work show that these “foreign crops” have become major parts of food supplies during this time, with 68.7% of national food supplies coming from foreign crops.

“The most important primary regions of diversity contributing to a country’s modern food system are more often … located elsewhere around the planet,” write the researchers. Foreign crops are also a major component in what is produced; 69.3% of crops grown are foreign. The usage of foreign crops both for consumption and agricultural production has increased in the past 50 years, even in countries that have high diversity of indigenous crops, report the researchers. “Without exception, regional food supplies and agricultural production systems were linked to the majority of the world’s primary regions of diversity owing to the extensive production and/or consumption of crops from different geographical regions.”

They also point out that several countries that had the largest change in use of foreign crops happened to be the ones that have experienced significant changes in agricultural production. For example, they note that Brazil produces significant amounts of soybean crops, which originated in East Asia, and Malaysia and Indonesia are producers of palm oil, which traces its origins to West and Central Africa and tropical regions in Central and South America.

Research like this gives new insights into globalization of food systems, and the researchers hope that it leads to more collaboration by international groups on genetic resource conservation and exchange. They succinctly stated a take-home message of this research: “We increasingly depend on each other’s plants.”

Where Food Originated
Many foods that define a country or culture’s cuisine—hot chili peppers in Southeast Asian cuisines, tomatoes in Italian cuisine, and potatoes that are a staple side dish throughout the United States and many European countries—did not actually originate in those areas. (In the examples mentioned here, the foods came from various areas in Central and South America.)

The Center for Tropical Agriculture, Cali Columbia, which has a goal of increasing the eco-efficiency of agriculture, explores the origins of food crops and more in interactive graphics available at blog.ciat.org/origin-of-crops, which is associated with the Khoury et al. research cited here in the main article. Here is a look at a few regions around the world and some of the crops indigenous to them.

• Seven crops originated in North America: blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, cranberries, pumpkins and gourds, grapes, and sunflowers.

• The researchers note that 12 crops are indigenous to Mexico and Central America. A few of these are cocoa beans, vanilla, chili peppers, beans, and maize.

• Coffee, sorghum, melons, and rice, among other crops, originated in many regions throughout Africa. The northern region of the continent along the Mediterranean Sea is where popular vegetables like carrots, lettuce, and cabbage originated, as well as hops, lentils, wheat, and olives.

• Apples, hops, asparagus, currants, hazelnuts, and sugar beets are some of the many crops indigenous to various parts of Europe.

• Asia is a very diverse region in terms of indigenous crops, with all types of citrus originating in East Asia; rice, lentils, and bananas and plantains in South Asia; and cherries, wheat, and barley in West Asia.

Karen Nachay,
Senior Associate Editor
[email protected]

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