Key Drivers of Variation in Food Crop Composition: A Scoping Review

This is a presentation recorded at the 2023 joint conference of the Society for Economic Botany and Society of Ethnobiology, held at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia from June 4-9, 2023.

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Key Drivers of Variation in Food Crop Composition: A Scoping Review
Kat Morgan, Selena Ahmed, John de la Parra, Sarah Brinkley, Teresa Warne
Periodic Table of Food Initiative

This scoping review aims to synthesize evidence on the key upstream drivers of downstream variation in food crop composition. The objective is to identify and map out factors that drive variation of food composition across select agricultural crops for human consumption, identify gaps in the literature, and determine groups of food biomolecules that are most vulnerable to shifts based on changes in the environment and management practices. The review includes scientific articles that address the research question on the agricultural and environmental factors that impact food crop composition. The search terms were input into seven electronic bibliographic databases to search for peer-reviewed publications. The selection of articles was limited to the fields of agriculture, climate science, food systems, and plant sciences. The scoping review protocol was developed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The findings of this review may be expanded upon for future research to inform adaptive agricultural standards and practices. The review is essential to identify groups of food biomolecules most vulnerable to shifts based on environmental and management factors, particularly in the context of climate change and degraded soils that pose a serious threat to global food security.