Undernourished coastal communities in the tropics — where children’s growth can be stunted by a lack of micronutrients — can get the vitamins and minerals they need from sustainable small-scale octopus fisheries, say researchers.
Research led by Cambridge scientists, and published today in Nature Food, shows that tropical small-scale octopus fisheries offer a sustainable source of food and income to communities that face food insecurity, where the prevalence of undernourishment can exceed 40% and stunting in children under five commonly exceeds 30%.
The high micronutrient density of octopus — including vitamin B12, copper, iron and selenium — means that human populations only need to eat a small quantity to supplement a diet primarily comprising staple plant crops. Just a small amount of production in a tropical small-scale octopus fishery can deliver the micronutrient needs to a…
