Climate-Nutrient-Crop Model: Novel Insights into Grain-Based Food Quality

Mineral nutrients spatiotemporally participate in thebiosynthesisand accumulation of storage biopolymers, which directly determinesthe harvested grain yield and quality. Optimizing fertilizer nutrientavailability improves the grain yield, but quality aspects are oftenunderestimated. We hypothesize that extensive mineral nutrients havesignificant effects on the biosynthesis, content, and compositionof storage proteins, ultimately determining physicochemical propertiesand food quality, particularly in the context of climate change. Toinvestigate this, we hierarchized 16 plant mineral nutrients and developeda novel climate-nutrient-crop model to address the fundamentalquestion of the roles of protein and starch in grain-based food quality.Finally, we recommend increasing the added value of mineral nutrientsas a socioeconomic strategy to enhance agro-food profitability, promoteenvironmental sustainability, and improve climate resilience.

Automated summary

Mineral nutrients play a crucial role in the biosynthesis and accumulation of storage biopolymers, directly affecting grain yield and quality. We propose that extensive mineral nutrients have significant effects on storage protein synthesis, content, and composition, thereby determining physicochemical properties and food quality, especially in the context of climate change.