Food Security and Nutrition in Mozambique: Comparative Study with Bean Species Commercialised in Informal Markets

• Main Authors: Alberto B. Charrua, Philip J. Havik, Salomão Bandeira, Luís Catarino, Ana Ribeiro-Barros, Pedro Cabral, Margarida Moldão, Maria M. Romeiras
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
• Series: Sustainability
• Subjects: East Africa; pulses; <i>Vigna</i>; <i>Phaseolus</i>; Leguminosae; malnutrition
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/8839

In Mozambique (South-eastern Africa), <i>Phaseolus vulgaris</i> and <i>Vigna</i> spp. are important staple foods and a major source of dietary protein for local populations, particularly for people living in rural areas who lack the financial capacity to include meat in their daily dietary options. This study focuses on the potential for improving diets with locally produced nutritious legumes whilst increasing food security and income generation among smallholder farmers. Using bean species and varieties commercialised as dry legumes in the country, it sets out to characterize and compare the chemical properties of <i>Phaseolus vulgaris</i> and <i>Vigna</i> spp. among the most commercialised dry legume groups in Mozambique. The principal component analysis showed a clear separation between <i>Phaseolus</i> and <i>Vigna</i> species in terms of proximate composition, whereas protein content was quite uniform in both groups. It concludes that the introduction of improved cultivars of <i>Phaseolus vulgaris</i> and <i>Vigna</i> species maize–legume intercropping benefits yield, diets and increases household income with limited and low-cost inputs while enhancing the resilience of smallholder farmers in vulnerable production systems affected by recurrent drought and the supply of legumes to urban informal markets.