Is Ethiopia missing a golden opportunity for addressing hidden hunger? The opportunities and challenges of biofortification

Hidden hunger—the silent epidemic of micronutrient deficiencies—is driven by poverty and continues to be a major public health challenge in the developing world. More than 3 billion people worldwide, primarily in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, simply cannot afford a diet rich in vital vitamins and minerals. The prevalence of iron, iodine, zinc, vitamin A, and folate deficiencies is alarmingly high worldwide.

Micronutrient deficits are frequently caused by poor quality diets that rely heavily on monotonous starchy staple foods lacking in key vitamins and minerals. Increasing dietary diversity, food fortification, micronutrient supplementation, fermentation and other forms of food processing, and other strategies have been defined to combat the hidden epidemic of micronutrient deficiencies.