Most of the best work in this field has been summarized by John Kempf on his podcast and book.
Nutrient density is driven by two related systems - the photosynthetic efficiency (amount of sunlight converted into sugars) which can range from 10% up to 30% + and the soil microbiology. As photosynthesis improves more sugars are exuded into the soil - often to select for microbes that perform certain function- such as making magnesium or phosphorus into a plant available form.
This begins a flywheel in the soil. As microbes in a healthy soil die, larger proteins and amino acids are consumed by plants roots. Now plants have to spend less energy building these larger compounds and they become more efficient at producing the proteins and amino acids that make food healthy.
IMHO - after 10 years of farming vegetables - this can all be jumpstarted by testing plant leaves for nutrients via plant sap analysis and then providing folier sprays that help improve photosynthesis and address protein synthesis pathways.
On the consumer side…we aren’t that far off from a device that can scan a fruit and have your phone tell you how nutrient dense it is. Bio-nutrient food association and the gathering of open ag technology have been working on this for some time.
Nutrient density is driven by two related systems - the photosynthetic efficiency (amount of sunlight converted into sugars) which can range from 10% up to 30% + and the soil microbiology. As photosynthesis improves more sugars are exuded into the soil - often to select for microbes that perform certain function- such as making magnesium or phosphorus into a plant available form. This begins a flywheel in the soil. As microbes in a healthy soil die, larger proteins and amino acids are consumed by plants roots. Now plants have to spend less energy building these larger compounds and they become more efficient at producing the proteins and amino acids that make food healthy.
IMHO - after 10 years of farming vegetables - this can all be jumpstarted by testing plant leaves for nutrients via plant sap analysis and then providing folier sprays that help improve photosynthesis and address protein synthesis pathways.
On the consumer side…we aren’t that far off from a device that can scan a fruit and have your phone tell you how nutrient dense it is. Bio-nutrient food association and the gathering of open ag technology have been working on this for some time.