Beyond Yield: Safeguarding Nutrient Density and Bioavailability in Climate-Resilient Food Systems

Climate change is widely regarded as an extreme treat not only for agriculture productivity but also for crop nutritional quality. Rising temperatures, more frequent heat waves, changes in rainfall patterns, soil salinization, and increasing CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere generate complex abiotic stresses that disturb physiological and biochemical processes in plants. These include photosynthesis, nitrogen assimilation, carbon–nitrogen balance, nutrient uptake and assimilate allocation during critical developmental stages such as grain filling. Increasing evidence reveals that climate-related stresses can reduce essential micronutrient concentrations such as iron, zinc and selenium, modify protein quantity and amino acid profile, impair nutrient bioavailability, and influence phytochemicals and anti-nutritional factors synthesis in staple crops. In addition, increases CO2 concentration has been consistently related to nutrient dilution effects, where increased carbohydrates accumulation exceeds mineral and protein deposition, thereby reducing nutrient density even when crop yields are sustained. Climate adaptation practices in agriculture mainly focus on increasing production and stability, with relatively little attention directed toward crop nutritional quality. However, productivity metrics alone do not provide sufficient insight into whether crops produced under stress maintain their capacity to meet human nutritional needs. The biggest challenge in this regard is the lack of systematic understanding about the role of bioavailability, changes in food crops matrix, and the digestive functionality in the climate-nutrition approach. Without understanding the changes in nutrient absorption, metabolism, and utilization caused by abiotic stresses, the adaptation strategies may lead to the development of crop resilience at the expense of human nutrition. Baseline characterization of nutrient density, bioaccessibility and nutrient–antinutrient interactions in locally important, indigenous and underutilised crops is also encouraged, particularly where such evidence can inform the resilience of regional food systems and dietary recommendations under environmental change.This research topic seeks to address this need through the development of interdisciplinary investigations that connect plant stress physiology, genotype-environment interactions, food science, and human nutrition. Specific areas of interest include, but are not limited to:• Effects of rising temperature, drought, salinity, and high CO2 on micronutrients concentration, protein composition, lipid profiles, and phytochemical changes.• Targeted breeding and biofortification strategies aimed at enhancing nutrient resilience under environmental variability• Genotype environment interactions influencing nutrient density, stability, and bioavailability• Performance of biofortified crops under abiotic stress• Mechanisms of nutrient dilution and changes in food matrix in response to abiotic stress• Modulation of antinutritional factors and nutrient-antinutrient interactions in response to climate change• In vitro bioaccessibility models and advanced digestion systems to evaluate nutrient release kinetics • In vivo bioavailability assessment to quantify nutrient absorption and utilization•Food processing and post-harvest technologies as tools for preserving or enhancing nutrient bioavailability, reducing antinutritional factors, and supporting nutrition security under climate and environmental stress.• Baseline assessment of nutrient bioaccessibility and nutrient–antinutrient interactions in locally important vegetables and other food crops, including the use of stable-isotope approaches and simulated digestion models. Topic editors: Said El Harkaoui, Hasnae Choukri, Ahmed Hajib Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79266/beyond-yield-safeguarding-nutrient-density-and-bioavailability-in-climate-resilient-food-systems