Nutrition is at the core of the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC). The consortium is working to address malnutrition, especially hidden hunger, in Africa through nutritious local food crops. These crops, little researched to date, are known as ‘orphan crops’ (‘minor crops’, ‘underutilized plant species’ or ‘neglected crops’). Many of them are rich in vitamins, essential minerals and other micronutrients. AOCC aims to make these nutritious crops more productive and more profitable for African farmers to grow, and easier for African consumers to use, among other objectives.

Malnutrition, including hidden hunger – micronutrient deficiencies that lead to problems such as child stunting – is a major challenge in Africa. It can be addressed, at least in part, by diversifying diets using nutritious orphan crops, including fruits, grains, vegetables and nuts, which can be produced and consumed locally. Promoting such orphan crops is a complex topic and requires many different interventions, from country-level policies on consumption down to local-level crop management activities, and working with governments through to non-governmental organizations and communities. Within this big picture, the role of the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC) is primarily to work on the genetics of orphan crops to make them more suitable for production and consumption. AOCC helps national agricultural research systems and other partners to improve these locally available crops by supporting the integration of genomic technologies into breeding schemes.

The African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC) involves a large network of partners with complementary strengths. The partners, drawn from both the private and public sectors, hail from different parts of the world. They contribute knowledge, technology and laboratory supplies, and assist in fundraising and advocacy. In growing the partnership, AOCC seeks research institutions, companies and individuals who bring their skill set to ensure that the consortium functions better and widens its impact.