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Will breadfruit solve the world hunger crisis? New developments in an innovative food crop.

Authors:
  • Breadfruit Institute National Tropical Botanical Garden

Abstract

Highlights o Using ArcGIS, monthly rainfall and temperature data were represented on maps. o „ArcGIS was used to create a map indicating areas of the globe ripe for growing breadfruit. „o The results can help guide potential breadfruit-growing countries in planning and implementing planting projects.
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A map can be a powerful visual tool, but can a
map help solve world hunger, rejuvenate agri-
cultural soil, and prevent mosquito-borne in-
fections? Can a map help slow global warming
and spur sustainable economic development in
tropical regions around the world? Perhaps a
map alone can’t do these things, but a map can
help display the real potential of a very special
tree, the breadfruit.
Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) is a tropical
tree originally from Papua New Guinea with a
rich and storied history. is starchy staple crop
has been grown in the Pacic for close to 3,000
years and was rst introduced to other tropical
regions more than 200 years ago. e trees are
easy to grow and thrive under a wide range of
ecological conditions, producing abundant, nu-
tritious food for decades without the labor, fer-
tilizer, and chemicals used to grow eld crops.
ese multipurpose trees improve soil con-
ditions and protect watersheds while providing
food, timber, and animal feed. All parts of the
tree are used—even the male owers, which are
dried and burned to repel mosquitoes. Because
of its multiple uses and long, productive,
Will Breadfruit Solve the World Hunger Crisis?
New Developments in an Innovative Food Crop
By Matthew P. Lucas and Diane Ragone, National Tropical Botanical Garden
Highlights
Using ArcGIS, monthly rainfall and
temperature data was represented
on maps.
ArcGIS was used to create a map
indicating areas of the globe ripe
for growing breadfruit.
The results can help guide potential
breadfruit-growing countries
in planning and implementing
planting projects.
Map showing zones of “best” and “suitable” growing conditions for breadfruit.
low-maintenance life, breadfruit was spread
throughout the tropical Pacic by intrepid voy-
agers. Hawaii is one of the many island chains
where breadfruit, or ulu in Hawaiian, was cul-
tivated as a major staple. It is tting that now
Hawaii is home to the headquarters of an
organization devoted to promoting the con-
servation and use of breadfruit for food and re-
forestation around the world.
e Breadfruit Institute, within the nonprot
National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG), is
a major center for the tree’s conservation and re-
search of more than 120 varieties from through-
out the Pacic, making it the world’s largest
repository of breadfruit. As a result of this work,
the institute has received requests from numer-
ous countries seeking quality breadfruit variet-
ies for tree-planting projects. To address this
need, the Breadfruit Institute has developed in-
novative propagation methods, making it pos-
sible to produce and ship thousands, or even
millions, of breadfruit plants anywhere in the
world.
ese breadfruit tree-planting projects can
help alleviate hunger and support sustainable
agriculture, agroforestry, and income genera-
tion. Most of the world’s one billion hungry peo-
ple live in the tropics—the same region where
breadfruit can be grown. However, as Dr. Diane
Ragone, author and director of the Breadfruit
Institute, has learned, stating these facts and
illustrating them are two very dierent things.
A strong realization is made when a person
sees the data from the United Nations Food
and Agriculture Organization global map on
world hunger (www.fao.org/hunger) coupled
with a map showing areas suitable for growing
breadfruit.
It was originally this type of powerful visual
aid Ragone wanted when she began working
with NTBG’s GIS coordinator and coauthor
Matthew Lucas. To create such a map, Lucas
began by constructing a model within ArcGIS
using WorldClim (www.worldclim.org)
30-second resolution global raster datasets of
interpolated climate conditions compiled from
the past 50 years (Hijmans et al. 2005). With
the GIS, monthly rainfall and temperature data
was condensed into total annual rainfall, mean
annual temperature, and minimum and maxi-
mum annual temperature. en, the annual cli-
mate data was reclassied.
“Suitable” and “best” ranges of rainfall and
temperature were identied after referring to
the breadfruit prole written by Ragone for
Traditional Trees of Pacic Islands (Elevitch
2006). e best ranges in mean temperature
and rainfall were given a value of 2, whereas
suitable conditions were given a value of 1; con-
ditions that were deemed too low or high were
Different varieties of breadfruit are conserved in the world’s largest collection of bread-
fruit at the Breadfruit Institute in Hawaii. (Photo credit: © Jim Wiseman, courtesy of the
Breadfruit Institute)
This Hunger map is based on the 2011
Global Hunger Index score displayed per
country.
NGO Non-Governmental
Organization
7
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given a value of -10. ArcGIS was used to com-
bine all the reclassied climate datasets. e -
nal output resulted in a global dataset that now
displayed areas deemed unsuitable for growing
breadfruit as < 0, areas assumed suitable with a
value of < 4 and > 0, and best areas with a value
of 4. is data was displayed in combination
with 2011 Global Hunger Index scores entered
into a vector dataset of countries. e resul-
tant map helps the viewer see the real potential
breadfruit development could have for tropical
regions.
With this new visual aid completed, Ragone
and Josh Schneider, cofounder of Cultivaris/
Global Breadfruit, a horticultural partner that
propagates breadfruit trees for global distribu-
tion, attended the World Food Prize sympo-
sium in October 2011. e breadfruit suitability
map was shared with Calestous Juma, professor
of the practice of international development
and director of the Science, Technology, and
Globalization Project at the Belfer Center for
Science and International Aairs at the Harvard
Kennedy School. Juma has extensive experience
and contacts in Africa.
e map was also shared with the former
president of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo. It
was at Obasanjo’s invitation that Schneider vis-
ited Nigeria and met with government ocials
and researchers to discuss breadfruit planting
projects. Due to the relatively ne scale (1 km)
of the original datasets, a more detailed map
of Nigeria showing areas suitable for growing
breadfruit, along with roads and cities, was an
invaluable tool during discussions.
e World Food Prize meeting also spurred
other similar country-specic maps that
have been created and shared with organiza-
tions and individuals working in Haiti, Ghana,
Jamaica, Central America, and China. e maps
provide government ocials, foundations, and
potential donors with clear information about
the potential of breadfruit in specic areas.
e maps have spurred the question, What
other countries are best suited for growing
breadfruit? ArcGIS was used to combine the
breadfruit suitability data with a vector layer of
country borders. is not only resulted in a list
of countries that could possibly grow breadfruit
but also made it easy to identify and rank the
About the Authors
Matthew Lucas is the GIS coordinator for the
Conservation Department at the National
Tropical Botanical Garden. As a graduate of
the University of Hawaii, Hilo, Department of
Geography, Lucas hails from a conservation
background where he uses models and maps to
guide more ecient decision making and prob-
lem solving. Diane Ragone, PhD, is director of
the Breadfruit Institute at the National Tropical
Botanical Garden. She is an authority on the
conservation and use of breadfruit and has
conducted horticultural and ethnobotanical
studies in more than 50 islands in Micronesia,
Polynesia, and Melanesia.
For more information about the Breadfruit
Institute and NTBG, visit www.ntbg.org/
breadfruit. To help support the work of the
institute and breadfruit tree-planting proj-
ects, visit ntbg.org/breadfruit/donate/
plantatree.php. For more information on
Global Breadfruit and how you can help, visit
www.globalbreadfruit.com.
amount of area each country has that is suitable
and best for growing breadfruit.
It became clear that this map, the data, and
the ArcGIS methodology used to construct
it provided not only a powerful visual aid but
also a useful research tool. Armed with these
maps and the information they convey, Lucas
and Ragone are continuing to pair what has
been learned about breadfruit cultivation with
ArcGIS to help understand and display future
breadfruit potential. ey are currently working
on a climate change analysis that uses predict-
ed climate datasets of various future climate
models and scenarios in an attempt to quantify
areas that would have the highest likelihood
of sustainable breadfruit development. ey
are also working on publishing an online map
displaying global breadfruit growing potential.
Finally, it is the hope of the Breadfruit Institute
and NTBG that future breadfruit development
will be expanded and that ArcGIS will help
guide potential breadfruit-growing countries in
planning and implementing planting projects
of this very special tree.
Citations
Hijmans, R. J., S. E. Cameron, J. L. Parra,
P. G. Jones, and A. Jarvis (2005). “Very High
Resolution Interpolated Climate Surfaces for
Global Land Areas.International Journal of
Climatology 25:1965–1978.
Ragone, D. (2006). “Artocarpus altilis (bread-
fruit).” In Traditional Trees of Pacic Islands.
Elevitch, C. R. (ed). Holualoa, HI: Permanent
Agroforestry Resources, 85–100. Available at
www.traditionaltree.org.
Von Grebmer, K., M. Torero, T. Olonbiyi, et al.
(2011). “2011 Global Hunger Index: e Challenge
of Hunger: Taming Price Spikes and Excessive
Food Price Volatility.” International Food Policy
Research Institute, Bonn. Available at www.ifpri.
org/sites/default/files/publications/ghi11.
pdf.
Breadfruit is extremely productive, producing an average of 150–200 and up to as many as 600 nutritious fruits per season.
... Breadfruit, and breadfruit agroforestry, remain vastly understudied despite significant international recognition of its potential roles in developing climate-smart agriculture and addressing global hunger [7,8]. As a long-lived tropical tree species, breadfruit has considerable potential to contribute to climate-smart agriculture in terms of mitigation, ...
... C l = M l × 0.514 (8) where M l is the total dry biomass of the leaf component in g, and C l is the total carbon mass of leafy components in g. Woody and/or leaf biomass was calculated in Excel for each row of the spreadsheet. ...
Article
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Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) is an underutilized Pacific tree crop that has been highlighted as having substantial potential to contribute to global food security and climate-smart agriculture, including adaptation to and mitigation of climate change. To explore the carbon sequestration potential of breadfruit production, we characterize tree volume, wood density, carbon density, foliar biomass, and growth rates of breadfruit in Hawai‘i. Strong relationships to trunk or branch diameter were displayed for wood density (r² 0.81), carbon density (r² 0.87), and foliar biomass (r² 0.91), which were combined to generate an allometric prediction of tree volume (r² 0.98) based on tree diameter at breast height. Growth rates, as measured by diameter at breast height, were well predicted over time when trees were classified by habitat suitability. We extrapolate potential breadfruit growth and carbon sequestration in above-ground biomass to the landscape scale over time. This study shows that breadfruit is on the low end of broadleaf tropical trees in moist and wet environments, but in an orchard can be expected to sequester ~69.1 tons of carbon per hectare in its above-ground biomass over a 20-year period.
... Breadfruit has been named a priority crop for addressing global hunger, rural livelihoods, and environmental degradation associated with agriculture (Lucas and Ragone, 2012;FAO, 2019). ...
Technical Report
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In this paper, we discuss the need for fungal management in breadfruit, and a holistic approach to control or reduce fungal issues. This means using many tools, such as moisture management, pruning and spacing, airflow, ground covers, tree health, and, when necessary, biological and chemical controls.
... The purpose of this paper is to develop an empirically validated, fuzzy-set model for breadfruit production that incorporates both climate and soil data, and to explore the global potential for breadfruit cultivation in current and future climate scenarios. This builds upon prior work that conducted a two-tiered suitability model for breadfruit based on rainfall and temperature [61]. The developed model is utilized to further assess potential changes in breadfruit production over time with anticipated climate scenarios to understand global and regional changes in productive potential. ...
Article
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Humanity faces significant challenges to agriculture and human nutrition, and changes in climate are predicted to make such challenges greater in the future. Neglected and underutilized crops may play a role in mitigating and addressing such challenges. Breadfruit is a long-lived tree crop that is a nutritious, carbohydrate-rich staple, which is a priority crop in this regard. A fuzzy-set modeling approach was applied, refined, and validated for breadfruit to determine its current and future potential productivity. Hawai’i was used as a model system, with over 1,200 naturalized trees utilized to calibrate a habitat suitability model and 56 producer sites used to validate the model. The parameters were then applied globally on 17 global climate models at the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 global climate projections for 2070. Overall, breadfruit suitability increases in area and in quality, with larger increases occurring in the RCP 8.5 projection. Current producing regions largely remain unchanged in both projections, indicating relative stability of production potential in current growing regions. Breadfruit, and other tropical indigenous food crops present strong opportunities for cultivation and food security risk management strategies moving forward.
... A genuine interest in the nutritional value of the fruit has emerged over the last fifty years, initially through investigations of traditional Pacific diets and more recently coupled to growing promotion and cultivation of the crop globally (Deivanai and Bhore, 2010;Jones et al., 2011aJones et al., , 2011bLangston and Lincoln, 2018). Breadfruit has been hailed as having the potential to transform agriculture in the global tropics, particularly in the areas of malnutrition and poverty (Jones et al., 2011a(Jones et al., , 2011bLucas and Ragone, 2012). Although nutritive values fluctuate amongst cultivars and cooking methods, the fruit is generally a good source of complex carbohydrates while being low in fat and sugars with a relatively low glycemic index, and it is rich in certain vitamins and minerals (Ragone, 1997(Ragone, , 2014Meilleur et al., 2004;Jones et al., 2011aJones et al., , 2011bLiu et al., 2014;Turi et al., 2015). ...
Article
Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) has been promoted as an underutilized crop with tremendous potential to address global hunger and transform agricultural practices in the tropics. While traditionally confined to Oceania, breadfruit has been spread throughout the global tropics in the 250 years, with a significant increase in distribution and production over the last 20–30 years, bringing the crop into a vast array of growing conditions. We apply a systematic protocol to 33 previous studies representing 41 locations to explore the effect of abiotic environmental factors on nutritive aspects of breadfruit in three categories: proximate analyses, micro- and macro-nutrients, and vitamins. In applying linear and multi-variate regressions, data suggests that the abiotic factors play a strong role in the nutritive value of the crop and that each category of nutrition responds differently to the environment. In general, proximate analyses were most responsive to average annual precipitation, while vitamin concentrations respond to both climate and soil parameters; micro- and macro-nutrients show little correlation to climate or soils. We present findings in the context of previous research on abiotic influence of food nutrition.
... B readfruit has experienced an exponential increase of plantings in Hawai'i (Langston and Lincoln, 2018) and an increase in distribution and cultivation globally . The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2009) has recognized breadfruit as one of 35 priority crops for its tremendous potential to improve global food security, human nutrition, and climate-smart agriculture in the tropics (Lucas and Ragone, 2012;McGregor et al., 2016). As one of the few staple foods that grow on long-lived perennial trees, breadfruit has potential to dramatically shift cultivation practices in tropical regions away from annual crops. ...
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Breadfruit ( Artocarpus altilis ) cultivation is gaining momentum throughout the tropics due to its high yield and nutritious fruit. One impediment to expanding production of breadfruit is the lack of agronomic research related to production management. We examined foliar nutrient concentrations of different leaf positions and leaf parts to assess within- and between-tree variance to inform an effective sampling protocol. We further validated the sampling protocol on 595 trees at 87 sites that were assessed for yield and productivity. Foliar nutrients differed significantly by categories of productivity. For the first time, breadfruit-specific standards of foliar nutrient concentrations are presented for consideration. In conclusion, we recommend that foliar sampling use petioles harvested from leaves in the third position from the branch tip using sun-exposed leaves in the midcanopy of each tree.
... During the past two centuries, it has since been introduced to various tropical regions and become a prominent local food in several additional regions, with significant growth in processing and marketing over the last 30 years. Most recently, it has been promoted as having significant potential to serve as an important staple food globally (Lucas and Ragone 2012). As one of the few starchy, carbohydraterich crops that grows on long-lived perennial trees, breadfruit has the potential to dramatically change agricultural practices in tropical regions. ...
Chapter
Breadfruit species (Artocarpus altilis and A. altilis × A. mariannensis) have been an important food and material resource for many Pacific Island societies for centuries, and have traditionally been a primary staple for many small islands and atolls. Domesticated by Near Oceania peoples several thousand years ago, breadfruit was spread throughout the tropical Pacific Islands as a core part of their agricultural economies. During the historical European colonial period, breadfruit cultivars were spread to many new tropical regions outside of Oceania, where they have become an important food source to varying degrees. Breadfruit played multiple roles in traditional cultivation, from closed canopy food forests, to heavily managed agroforesty systems, to backyard trees. In contemporary times, technological advances have facilitated new small‐ to large‐scale production for commercialization of breadfruit. As breadfruit cultivation becomes increasingly extensive, agronomic information on cropping systems and production management becomes increasingly necessary for efficient crop production and loss prevention. This review covers the botanical classification of breadfruit; its traditional spread, cultivation, and uses; and contemporary research into the agronomic aspects of breadfruit growth and production, including the physiology, ecology, yields and phenology, propagation, pests and diseases, and symbionts. We conclude by outlining the future agronomic research priorities for breadfruit.
... During the past two centuries, it has since been introduced to various tropical regions and become a prominent local food in several additional regions, with significant growth in processing and marketing over the last 30 years. Most recently, it has been promoted as having significant potential to serve as an important staple food globally (Lucas and Ragone 2012). As one of the few starchy, carbohydraterich crops that grows on long-lived perennial trees, breadfruit has the potential to dramatically change agricultural practices in tropical regions. ...
Article
Full-text available
Breadfruit species (Artocarpus altilis and A. altilis × A. mariannensis) have been an important food and material resource for many Pacific Island societies for centuries, and have traditionally been a primary staple for many small islands and atolls. Domesticated by Near Oceania peoples several thousand years ago, breadfruit was spread throughout the tropical Pacific Islands as a core part of their agricultural economies. During the historical European colo- nial period, breadfruit cultivars were spread to many new tropical regions out- side of Oceania, where they have become an important food source to varying degrees. Breadfruit played multiple roles in traditional cultivation, from closed canopy food forests, to heavily managed agroforesty systems, to backyard trees. In contemporary times, technological advances have facilitated new small to large‐scale production for commercialization of breadfruit. As breadfruit culti- vation becomes increasingly extensive, agronomic information on cropping systems and production management becomes increasingly necessary for effi- cient crop production and loss prevention. This review covers the botanical classification of breadfruit; its traditional spread, cultivation, and uses; and contemporary research into the agronomic aspects of breadfruit growth and production, including the physiology, ecology, yields and phenology, propaga- tion, pests and diseases, and symbionts. We conclude by outlining the future agronomic research priorities for breadfruit.
... has great potential to positively impact food security (Ragone, 1997;Jones et al., 2010Jones et al., , 2011Lucas and Ragone, 2012). A large number of cultivars display selection for different traits in breadfruit (Jones et al., 2011(Jones et al., , 2013bLiu et al., 2015) and the desire for certain traits, such as high micronutrient production and a longer fruiting period, has promoted many studies and efforts to conserve and better understand the diversity found in breadfruit (Jones et al., 2010(Jones et al., , 2013a(Jones et al., , 2013bZerega et al., 2015). ...
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Full-text available
Premise of the Study Underutilized crops, such as breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis, Moraceae) have the potential to improve global food security. Humans have artificially selected many cultivars of breadfruit since its domestication began approximately 3500 years ago. The goal of this research was to identify transcriptomic signals of positive selection and to develop genomic resources that may facilitate the development of improved breadfruit cultivars in the future. Methods A reference transcriptome of breadfruit was assembled de novo and annotated. Twenty‐four transcriptomes of breadfruit and its wild relatives were generated and analyzed to reveal signals of positive selection that may have resulted from local adaptation or natural selection. Emphasis was placed on MADS‐box genes, which are important because they often regulate fruiting timing and structures, and on carotenoid biosynthesis genes, which can impact the nutritional quality of the fruit. Key Results Over 1000 genes showed signals of positive selection, and these genes were enriched for localization to plastids. Nucleotide sites and individuals under positive selection were discovered in MADS‐box genes and carotenoid biosynthesis genes, with several sites located in cofactor or DNA‐binding domains. A McDonald–Kreitman test comparing wild to cultivated samples revealed selection in one of the carotenoid biosynthesis genes, abscisic acid 8′‐hydroxylase 3. Conclusions This research highlights some of the many genes that may have been intentionally or unintentionally selected for during the human‐mediated dispersal of breadfruit and stresses the importance of conserving a varied germplasm collection. It has revealed candidate genes for further study and produced new genomic resources for breadfruit.
... Many countries, with a total population of over 2 billion people, have ecological conditions suitable for cultivating breadfruit (BFI 2013;Lucas and Ragone 2012). There is tremendous interest in planting more breadfruit trees and expanding use of the fruit. ...
Conference Paper
The National Tropical Botanical Garden in Hawaii has been involved in the conservation of breadfruit germplasm since 1977. The Breadfruit Institute was established in 2003 to promote the conservation and use of breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) for food and reforestation. The Institute manages the largest and most diverse collection of breadfruit in the world, with more than 120 cultivars conserved in field genebanks. Many of these cultivars are rare in their native lands and recent cyclones have damaged or destroyed countless trees throughout Oceania. This collection provides unique opportunities to study this important staple crop. Research includes micropropagation, assessing genetic and morphological diversity, evaluation of nutritional composition, yield, fruit characteristics, and seasonality, insecticidal properties of male flowers, and soil mycorrhizal associations. Our research has identified nutrient-rich, productive cultivars that can make significant contributions to food security in the tropics. We provide an overview of our work to 1) collect and document breadfruit diversity and traditional uses in the Pacific Island, and 2) study the Breadfruit Institute’s germplasm collection to enhance our understanding of this crop for conservation and utilization. An initiative to distribute selected cultivars for tree planting projects is discussed. To date, more than 60,000 breadfruit trees have been distributed to 32 countries. This initiative involves collaboration with botanical gardens, university researchers, the private sector, and government and non- governmental agencies. Our work is discussed in the context of an exciting breadfruit renaissance—for food security, agricultural sustainability, and economic development—underway throughout the tropics. Efforts include: 1) identifying and conserving critical germplasm, 2) using fruit from existing trees and planting new trees, 3) public awareness campaigns and outreach programs, 4) refining orchard management and agroforestry systems to maximize tree health, production and yields, 5) creating tree to table culinary programs, and 6) developing, producing and marketing value-added products.
Book
Full-text available
The purpose of this guide is to point the way for cultivation of breadfruit in agroforestry systems designed for today’s socioeconomic and environmental conditions. The ancient multistory agroforestry systems of the Pacific and other tropical regions are a promising initial model for what is possible in terms of long-term productivity using minimal imported inputs. Additionally, there is a wide range of modern techniques to draw upon in developing agroforestry systems that can expand upon indigenous models to further address issues of ecological, economical, and social sustainability in the modern context. Such methods harmonize with organic approaches to food production that simultaneously enhance soil fertility and health, water quality, biodiversity, ecosystem health, and carbon sequestration—regenerative organic agriculture.
Artocarpus altilis (breadfruit)
  • D Ragone
Ragone, D. (2006). "Artocarpus altilis (breadfruit). " In Traditional Trees of Paci c Islands. Elevitch, C. R. (ed). Holualoa, HI: Permanent Agroforestry Resources, 85-100. Available at www.traditionaltree.org.
Global Hunger Index: e Challenge of Hunger: Taming Price Spikes and Excessive Food Price Volatility
  • Von Grebmer
  • M Torero
  • T Olo Nbiyi
Von Grebmer, K., M. Torero, T. Olo nbiyi, et al. (2011). "2011 Global Hunger Index: e Challenge of Hunger: Taming Price Spikes and Excessive Food Price Volatility. " International Food Policy Research Institute, Bonn. Available at www.ifpri. org/sites/default/files/publications/ghi11. pdf.