review · Frontiers in Plant Science
Neglected and underutilised legumes across Africa possess dense nutritional profiles and functional properties capable of addressing malnutrition and strengthening regional food security. These crops contain high levels of dietary fibres, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids, proteins, essential amino acids, micronutrients, and bioactive compounds linked to positive health outcomes. Despite these advantages, mainstream grain legumes have historically received far more research attention, limiting the wider adoption and cultivation of alternative species. A detailed assessment of selected African crops, including Bambara groundnut, African yam bean, Marama bean, and winged bean, examines their nutritional characteristics alongside existing barriers to broader use. Targeted strategies are required to integrate these resilient crops into mainstream agriculture and formulate affordable, accessible functional foods.
Malnutrition remains a critical challenge across Africa, yet many indigenous and resilient legumes continue to be overlooked. By outlining the high nutritional and functional value of these neglected crops, this work supports efforts to diversify food supplies, strengthen food security, and provide populations with accessible, health-promoting dietary options.
The identified legumes offer raw material opportunities for food manufacturers and agribusinesses seeking to formulate affordable functional foods, protein supplements, and nutrient-dense ingredients. As the abstract describes a review of nutritional properties, current challenges, and potential strategies, the commercial pathway remains at an early research stage, requiring crop improvement, supply chain integration, and formulation testing before scalable market deployment can occur.
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Globally, legumes are vital constituents of diet and perform critical roles in maintaining well-being owing to the dense nutritional contents and functional properties of their seeds. While much emphasis has been placed on the major grain legumes over the years, the neglected and underutilized legumes (NULs) are gaining significant recognition as probable crops to alleviate malnutrition and give a boost to food security in Africa. Consumption of these underutilized legumes has been associated with several health-promoting benefits and can be utilized as functional foods due to their rich dietary fibers, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), proteins/essential amino acids, micro-nutrients, and bioactive compounds. Despite the plethora of nutritional benefits, the underutilized legumes have not received much research attention compared to common mainstream grain legumes, thus hindering their adoption and utilization. Consequently, research efforts geared toward improvement, utilization, and incorporation into mainstream agriculture in Africa are more convincing than ever. This work reviews some selected NULs of Africa (Adzuki beans ( Vigna angularis ), African yam bean ( Sphenostylis stenocarpa ), Bambara groundnut ( Vigna subterranea ), Jack bean ( Canavalia ensiformis ), Kidney bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris ), Lima bean ( Phaseolus lunatus ), Marama bean ( Tylosema esculentum ), Mung bean, ( Vigna radiata ), Rice bean ( Vigna Umbellata ), and Winged bean ( Psophocarpus tetragonolobus )), and their nutritional, and functional properties. Furthermore, we highlight the prospects and current challenges associated with the utilization of the NULs and discusses the strategies to facilitate their exploitation as not only sources of vital nutrients, but also their integration for the development of cheap and accessible functional foods.
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DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1105364
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