Indigenous / Traditional Vegetables and Crops Dr I du Plooy, the Programme Manager for Crop Science commented that contribution of local foods to reduce health risks has always been recognised as part of indigenous knowledge and part of the cultural system. He said growing recognition globally on the role of local nutraceuticals and functional foods in improving the health of people and the growing nutraceutical market worldwide has made it more important to identify, investigate and extract natural food additives and health promoting substances from local traditional food crops. He reported that the ARC is collaborating with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and other relevant stakeholders to develop nutraceuticals and functional foods as products from crops traditionally used by rural communities in South Africa.