A Journey from Neglected and Underutilized Species to Future Smart Food for Achieving Zero Hunger. How can Scaling-Up be Achieved?

High prevalence of hunger and malnutrition remains a major challenge, particularly in the developing world. Over-reliance on a few staple crops in our food systems leads to low production diversity contributing to low dietary diversity. How can we ensure that our food systems provide sufficient, adequate and nutritious food for all? Rediscovering and developing Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS) could be an answer. Also known as ‘traditional foods’, ‘minor’ or ‘promising’ crops, NUS may be marginally consumed locally, but have been overlooked by research, extension services and policy makers. To realize the potentials of relevant NUS and update what local communities know for generations for tackling today’s food production and nutrition challenges, FAO launched a Future Smart Food (FSF) initiative in Asia and the Pacific to select and prioritize NUS that are nutrient-dense, climate-resilient, economically viable, and locally available or adaptable as Future Smart Food. Turning NUS into FSFs could be the beginning of a journey that will transform conventional agriculture from a mere producer of staple foods into a provider of diversified food, add new species to our diets that can result in better supply of nutrients, and provide economic and environmental benefits. But how to achieve this? This chapter will outline how the Future Smart Food initiative can be scaled up along the food system for achieving Zero Hunger.