Despite being the second largest producer of food, India is home to the world’s second largest undernourished population (195.9 million). The incidence of stunting in children is higher in rural areas due to lower income. In addition, more than half of the women (15–49 years) are anemic, which has lasting effects on future pregnancies and cause for the high rate of low-birth weight babies. In this regard vegetables play an important and significant role in human nutrition for not only providing essential nutrients but also providing compounds related to health promotion and disease prevention. But the present production of vegetables is not sufficient to meet the daily requirement of growing population. In order to combat this issue nutrition gardens enhance dietary diversity by providing micronutrients through constant supply of fruits and vegetables and sufficient to meet the family’s requirements at doorsteps which prevent malnutrition at household level.
A. Janaki Rani*
Dept. of Extension Education and Communication Management, Community Science College and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu (625 104), India
S. Amutha
Dean, Community Science College and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu (625 104), India
S. Kanchana
Dept. of Human Development, Community Science College and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu (625 104), India
Janaki Rani1, A., Amutha, S., Kanchana, S., 2021. Nutrition Garden – A Way to Ensure Nutritional Security in Rural Areas. Biotica Research Today 3(6), 464-467.
Pankaj Kumar, Kuldeep Singh, Prabhjot Kaur, 2014. Nutrition garden: an essential component of diversification for sustainable agriculture. Environment Conservation Journal 15(3), 127-131.
Shoba Suri, 2020. Nutrition Gardens: A Sustainable Model for Food Security and Diversity. ORF Issue Brief No. 369, June issue, Observer Research Foundation.