Wild edible plants from western peninsular and Deccan Plateau regions of India: valued nutritional and functional foods

Abstract

Food is the most fundamental necessity for humans to meet their calorie and nutrient requirements and stay healthy. In India, the green revolution helped to achieve food security; however, it threatened the overall nutritional security of the country, due to the agricultural adaptation of selected crops for cultivation over decades. Similarly, climate further threatens the overall food security set-up. Hence, bringing back wild edible plants with potential medicinal and nutritional value in the food chain is crucial to achieving food and nutritional security in climate change scenarios, as these plants have nutritional diversity, seasonal availability, and resistance to climate change. Considering the importance and potential of wild edible plants, a study was done to document the plants along with related details from the Deccan Plateau Regions of India. In this review, we summarized 314 wild edible plants from 84 families occurring in the State of Maharashtra, the largest portion of the western peninsular and Deccan Plateau regions of India. The parts of these species used as food and their reported biological activities are also highlighted. Of these, 70% of the plants were categorized as least concern for threat status by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). These plants have both food and medicinal uses. Around 136 plants are reported to have promising antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties, highlighting their utility as a functional food. Considering sustainable utilization, nearly 131 plants can be cultivated or directly sourced for consumption from their ecological niche. We believe these wild edible species have the potential to improve people's food and nutritional security, including livelihoods in the region.