Prince Charles backs growth of ‘forgotten foods’
The Prince of Wales has unveiled the Forgotten Foods Network, aimed at growing crops once eaten by the Aztecs, Incas, Mayans, Greek and Romans, including little-known foods such as pigweed, which can thrive as the world’s climate changes and reduce strain on foods such as rice.
RICE may be a tried and tested staple of dinners around the world, but next time you think of serving it, why not try some delicious pigweed instead?
The unusual plant is among the ancient “forgotten foods” which have received the royal seal of approval after the Prince of Wales launched a project to bring them back into fashion.
The Prince has unveiled the Forgotten Foods Network, aimed at harnessing the power of ingredients once eaten by the Aztecs, Incas, Mayans, Greek and Romans which have been usurped in modern kitchens by wheat, rice, soybean and maize, which currently make up 60 per cent of the world’s food.
By diversifying diets to introduce little-known, under-utilised crops, scientists hope to keep the world fed should one of the four current staples fail as a result of plant disease, pesticide resistance or climate change.
While the staple crops provide enough calories, they are not as nutritious as many other plants which have fallen out of fashion.
Crops For the Future, a Malaysian organisation, is currently testing littleknown foods for their nutritional value and growing abilities in hotter weather as the world’s climate changes. The Prince said the focus on finding new crops was “crucial for food security over the next 20 years”. Warning it was already “almost too late”, he praised the Malaysian project as “impressive” as he officially launched it as part of the royal visit to the country.
During a visit to the laboratory, Professor Sayed Azam-ali, Crops For the Future chief executive, told him it had been partly inspired by the Prince’s own vision for sustainable agriculture and biodiversity, saying: “The Prince set the agenda of a better planet, and that better planet we’re trying to support with better crops.”
The project was inspired by reports predicting the planet’s temperature will rise by 2C by 2050, with an ex- panding population and more limited and unhealthy diets. Currently 60 per cent of the world’s food comes from the four major crops. By “translating knowledge of the foods of our past across generations” a spokesman said, “forgotten foods could help transform the diets of the future”.
It hopes to emulate the success of quinoa, once considered the “lost crop of the Incas” unheard of outside native South American and vegan recipes before being propelled into every cookbook and restaurant worth its salt.
Foods currently being tested include bambara groundnut, moringa, amaranth – a genus including plants known as pigweed – proso millet, winged bean and dragonfruit.
The Prince is understood to be “passionate” about the project, with its elements of climate change and farming perfectly aligned with his key causes.
During his visit, he gamely tasted some of the recipes on show, including kevaru roti, a type of finger millet grown in arid areas of Africa and Asia. More elaborate dishes included dragonfruit tortellini with turmeric yogurt, and bambara noodles with moringa pesto and roasted sweet potato sauce.
After being given a tour, the Prince told staff: “It’s very exciting.”
Royal banquets in future will be interesting affairs. The Prince of Wales has launched a project to bring backs foods that we no longer eat, often with good reason. His Forgotten Foods Network aims to revive ingredients popular among ancient civilisations but which are rarely to be found in the modern kitchen. Today’s staples of wheat, rice, soybean and maize dominate our diets. The new approach championed by Prince Charles seeks to widen the choice of foods while diversifying crop production. So dinner guests at Highgrove or Clarence House can look forward to a starter of pigweed and kevaru roti followed by dragonfruit tortellini and moringa quiche. Roast swan is probably out of the question.