Cultivated Ancient Wheats (Triticum spp.): Health-Beneficial Food Products

What is it about?

A sustainable and wholesome food supply is the most important incentive that has led to an increasing interest in ancient wheats over the past few decades. Ancient hulled wheats, einkorn, emmer, and spelt– the domesticated ancestors of modern durum and bread wheats– are among the early cereals with a long history as part of human diet. This review provides a holistic synthesis of the information on ancient wheats to facilitate a greater exploitation of their potential benefits.

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Why is it important?

The increasing interest recently shown in “organic” and “natural” products has led to the “rediscovery” of ancient wheat on the following grounds: (i) The nutritional value, high starch-resistance, and healing properties of the ancient wheat need to be exploited to maximize the sustainable supply of grain protein, fiber, minerals, and phytochemicals; (ii) The ability of the ancient wheat to grow in poor soils with low input and organic crop systems as well as their higher tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses including diseases, insects, extreme temperature (cold and heat), drought, and salinity; and (iii) The risks of genetic erosion of crop plants and the associated likely consequences for agriculture now call for revitalization of the unrealized potentials of ancestral species like einkorn, emmer, and spelt wheat.

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