Foraging Wild Edibles: Dietary Diversity in Expanded Food Systems.

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Science
• Ethnobotany
• Public Health

Background:

• Community forests offer underutilized food sources in US diets.
• Wild food data is scarce, yet these foods offer high nutritional value.
• Forageable foods can support chronic disease prevention and management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the potential of locally available forageable foods.
• To identify key antioxidant phytochemicals in wild foods.
• To advocate for the inclusion of forageables in dietary guidelines and food systems.

Main Methods:

• Field research in Syracuse, NY, focused on identifying and quantifying phytochemicals.
• Analysis of locally available, non-commercially harvested foods.
• Literature review on existing wild food data and nutritional benefits.

Main Results:

• Substantial amounts of five key antioxidant phytochemicals were identified in local forageable foods.
• Forageable foods have the potential to increase dietary diversity and nutritional quality.
• Significant gaps exist in micronutrient and macronutrient data for wild foods.

Conclusions:

• Further research is needed on the micronutrient and macronutrient profiles of a wider range of forageable foods.
• Community nutrition education programs should incorporate information on local wild edibles.
• The definition of the food system should be expanded to include forageable resources.