Underutilized high protein crops in India and pathways for scaling their contribution to protein security

India’s diets remain dominated by rice and wheat, and the nutritional consequences are now starkly quantified. A new review published in Discover Agriculture argues that a largely forgotten reservoir of indigenous plants could help close one of the country’s most stubborn nutrition gaps. The study, led by Vaishnavi Tamma and Prayagha Ramesh Kumar with EeVon Goh of the World Vegetable Center, systematically catalogued 28 underutilized crops that contain at least 15 percent protein on a dry-weight basis, a threshold that most staple cereals fail to reach. The authors contend that these species, spanning legumes, protein-rich leafy greens, and edible seeds and pods, represent a practical and climate-resilient lever for addressing the protein deficiency that affects an estimated 73 percent of Indians, more than 90 percent of whom are unaware of their daily protein requirements.

The dietary backdrop is sobering. Roughly 35 percent of Indians identify as vegetarian, yet even among meat, fish, and egg consumers, protein intake falls well short of both national recommendations and the EAT-Lancet planetary health targets. Rice and wheat contribute more than half of daily caloric intake, and their protein content is modest, at approximately 7 and 12 grams per 100 grams respectively. This cereal-heavy pattern is linked to persistent protein-energy malnutrition, with prevalence among children under five reported between 18 and 56 percent in various studies. The review’s authors argue that simply exhorting people to eat more protein is insufficient; the food system itself must supply affordable, culturally familiar, protein-dense options that do not depend on irrigation, expensive inputs, or fragile supply chains.

To identify candidates, the researchers conducted a structured literature search on Google Scholar using keywords spanning underutilized crops, indigenous foods, neglected species, and protein-rich plants, supplemented by reference-list screening. Species were admitted only if they met a battery of criteria: at least 15 percent protein on a dry-weight basis, adaptability across India’s arid, semi-arid, and tropical zones, multipurpose utility such as livestock feed, green manure, or biological nitrogen fixation, and compatibility with low-input farming. The 15 percent cutoff deliberately exceeds wheat’s protein content, ensuring shortlisted crops meaningfully outperform staples. Out of an estimated 25,000 edible underutilized species in India, 28 crops passed the screen. Legumes ranged from 17 to 35 grams of protein per 100 grams of dry seed, leafy greens from 16 to 28 grams per 100 grams of dried leaves, and edible seeds and pods from 20 to 25 grams per 100 grams of flour.

The agronomic case for these species is compelling. Jack bean and sword bean tolerate the marginal soils of arid and semi-arid zones, while winged bean adapts to acidic, well-drained soils and withstands drought, temperature extremes, and pests. Velvet bean thrives in warm, high-rainfall regions and fixes atmospheric nitrogen. Horse gram, cowpea, field bean, rice bean, adzuki bean, and kidney bean are distributed across southern, northeastern, and Himalayan zones, each matched to local rainfall and soil conditions. Leafy species such as drumstick, or moringa, grow widely across peninsular India, while others like jaiur, jarem, and water celery occupy specialized niches in the Darjeeling Himalayas, northeastern states, and Manipur. Many of these plants fit naturally into home gardens, intercropping systems, and agroforestry, offering year-round protein access without displacing staple production.

To understand where each crop currently sits in India’s food landscape, the team triangulated three independent evidence streams. Culinary documentation drew on regional cookbooks, food blogs, YouTube channels, and cultural archives, yielding 207 unique recipes representing 15 countries. Market mapping scanned major e-commerce platforms including Amazon, Flipkart, and IndiaMART, alongside niche organic and specialty sites, for raw, processed, powdered, and value-added products. Innovation mapping searched academic databases for applied food science, capturing 101 studies on germination, fermentation, extrusion, flour formulation, and product development. Cross-referencing the three streams revealed a highly uneven picture: only a handful of species, notably moringa, horse gram, field bean, kidney bean, and adzuki bean, appear simultaneously in kitchens, markets, and laboratories.

Moringa stands out as the exemplar of full translation. Once a backyard vegetable, it now appears globally in fortified bakery products, noodles, beverages, and supplements, a trajectory the authors attribute to its convergence across all three domains. Horse gram and adzuki bean retain strong culinary roots while entering composite flours, extruded snacks, and fortified weaning foods. By contrast, velvet bean, perilla, and pot cassia have taken a “supplement-first” route, marketed as powders, capsules, and extracts rather than everyday foods. Winged bean, field bean, and sword bean remain “culinary but not commercial,” embedded in regional diets but absent from value-added formats. Wild species such as vegetable fern, dogal tree leaves, and water celery barely register in any stream, reflecting localized consumption, ecological scarcity, or safety concerns.

The technical literature reveals consistent processing strategies. Partial substitution of legume flours or leaf powders at 5 to 25 percent into cereal products reliably raises protein and micronutrient density, but sensory acceptance declines when substitution exceeds roughly 20 percent, underscoring the need for formulation optimization. Germination, fermentation, extrusion, enzymatic pretreatment, and protein isolation all improve digestibility and reduce anti-nutritional compounds such as phytic acid, glucosinolates, and phenolics. Documented successes include moringa-fortified biscuits and noodles, lablab-enriched breads and macaroni, velvet-bean weaning foods, and winged-bean and adzuki-based tofu, tempeh, and protein isolates. Yet most innovations remain at laboratory or pilot scale, with few studies addressing shelf life, cost-effectiveness, or consumer segmentation. Notably, India accounts for roughly half of documented innovations, while Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Africa contribute about 40 percent, and Western contexts about 7 percent, revealing an Indian strength in culinary integration but a gap in industrial-scale processing research.

The barriers to scaling are as much social and institutional as they are biochemical. A persistent stigma labels many traditional vegetables as “poor people’s food,” eroding demand precisely as urbanization fragments the oral culinary knowledge that sustained them. Farmers often lack access to quality seed, reflecting weak seed systems and extension services that have historically prioritized yield-focused cereals and major pulses. Regulatory ambiguity surrounds novel and medicinally associated species, and quality standards are inconsistent. Meanwhile, detailed amino acid profiles and protein digestibility data, essential for estimating true dietary contribution, remain largely uncharacterized for most shortlisted species. The authors identify these knowledge gaps as a critical constraint on both product development and nutrition policy.

In response, the study proposes a multi-pathway framework linking six domains: product development, culinary promotion, ingredient supply chains, public nutrition programs, education and behavior change, and research-policy integration. Under the product pathway, food technology institutes, small and medium enterprises, and start-ups would convert locally accepted crops into fortified staples, instant mixes, and extruded snacks. Culinary promotion would enlist chefs, culinary schools, and state nutrition missions to normalize consumption through recognizable dishes, such as folding moringa leaves into palak paneer. Supply-chain development would engage farmer producer organizations and processing hubs to aggregate and standardize flours, while public procurement through FSSAI, the Integrated Child Development Services, and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme could institutionalize demand, with women’s self-help groups as suppliers. Protein literacy campaigns and clinic-based counselling would complete the demand side, supported by research on amino acid composition, bioavailability, sensory acceptance, and varietal improvement.

The review’s ultimate argument is that protein security in India is a systemic problem that cannot be solved by agronomy or food technology alone. The 28 crops it catalogues already possess the nutritional density, agroecological resilience, and cultural embeddedness needed to matter; what they lack is coordinated investment in seed systems, processing, regulation, and consumer familiarity. By aligning traditional knowledge with modern food science and linking smallholder production with institutional demand, the authors argue, India can move these neglected species from the margins of subsistence to the core of sustainable food systems, advancing national nutrition goals alongside Sustainable Development Goals 2 and 12. The opportunity, they conclude, is timely: climate change is already stressing cereal monocultures, and crops evolved to thrive on marginal land with minimal water may prove among the most resilient assets in the national food portfolio.

Subject of Research: Underutilized high protein crops in India and pathways for scaling their contribution to protein security

Article Title: Underutilized high protein crops in India and pathways for scaling their contribution to protein security

Article References: Tamma, V., Kumar, P. R., & Goh, E. (2026). Underutilized high protein crops in India and pathways for scaling their contribution to protein security. Discover Agriculture, 4(1), Article 284. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44279-026-00751-9

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s44279-026-00751-9

Keywords: Underutilized, high, protein, crops, India, pathways, scaling, contribution, security, scientific research