Work

Addressing Vitamin B12 deficiency through aeroponic fortification of a salad crop (Pisum sativum)

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Plants do not produce Vitamin B 12 , creating a nutrient insufficiency risk for those who do not consume animal-derived foods without supplementation. Furthermore, various diseases cause Vitamin B 12 deficiency. Here, we establish an approach for B 12 dietary supplementation that harnesses a horticultural technology to deliver the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of B 12 within a single portion of a salad crop (pea shoots). We demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach in a commercial and scalable growing environment, conducted an economic evaluation, find that it has versatility for growers, does not alter the product shelf-life, and that the B 12 persists during cold-chain storage. Furthermore, the RDA of B 12 is bioaccessible from this crop during simulated human digestion. Taken together, this provides a commercially-viable approach for dietary supplementation of B 12 intake, and a roadmap for the development and evaluation of fortification strategies.

Source: Communications Biology

DOI: 10.1038/s42003-026-09764-y

Authors: Bethany M. Eldridge, Sree Gowrinadh Javvadi, Natalia Perez-Moral, Jessie Sweetman, Luíza Lane de Barros Dantas, Shikha Saha, Deirdre A. Lynch, Thomas Hunt, Sophie E. Clough, Jemal Toussaint, Andy Worrall, Lillian R. Manzoni, Nigel Robinson, Keara A. Franklin, Cathrina H. Edwards, Jonathan Clarke, Jack Farmer, Martin Warren, Antony N. Dodd

Institutions: John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Quadram Institute, University of Bristol, University of British Columbia, Durham University, University of East Anglia, University of Kent

Language: English

Topic: Folate and B Vitamins Research

Subfield: Rheumatology

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Zero hunger, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $4,190

Funders: Wellcome Trust, UK Research and Innovation, European Commission, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

Awards: John Innes Centre Flexible Talent Mobility Account, G1399071765, G2687076390, Norwich Research Park Biosciences Doctoral Training Partnership, G3601653273, South West Biosciences Doctoral Training Partnership (SWBio3), G464821927, Salad crop fortification with Vitamin B12 to close a hidden hunger gap, South West Biosciences: A Doctoral Training Programme for Bioscience students at Bristol, Bath, Cardiff, Exeter and Rothamsted Research, Understanding mis-metalation of native versus heterologously expressed protein, G569262636, EDESIA: Plants, Food and Health: a cross-disciplinary PhD programme from Crop to Clinic, G6791190511, G742153418, G7835025966, G8238418921, Development of an Innovative Industrial Bioreacting and Fermentation Process producing an Organic Insect Repellent-Fertilizer for Ecological farming, G8591886698, G8695368828, G926259237

OpenAlex ID: W7134061119

FWCI: 4.762

Cites: 50

Cited by: 1

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