What are 'orphan crops'? And why is there a new campaign to get them adopted?
The grass pea is one: a hardy crop that can thrive in a drought. An agriculturist is spearheading an effort to diversity what farmers grow as climate change threatens staples like corn and wheat.
Cary Fowler was enjoying a comfortable retirement at his country home in New York. The food activist, who's in his 70s, already has shelves full of prestigious awards honoring his efforts to preserve the seeds of endangered crop varieties around the globe.
But something gnawed at him. A job left undone. "There was one big project I hadn't had a chance to tackle," he says.
He's now taking on that daunting project and has recruited partners that include the U.N. and the African Union. It's a quest to revive traditional food crops and fight the unhealthy dominance of major crops like corn, wheat and as the U.S. State Department's special envoy for global food security.
