According to experts from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), notes Unilever, most people’s diets are probably not varied enough - and the implications of a repetitive diet are far more serious than boring mealtimes.

The global population relies on a surprisingly small number of ingredients for our staple diet. In fact, the FAO’s experts have revealed that 75% of the global food supply comes from just 12 crops and five animal species – yet there are more than 20,000 known edible plant species worldwide.

Why does this matter, the company asks? For a start, it says, it’s not good for our health. A lack of dietary diversity makes it more difficult to get all the vitamins and minerals we need.

This isn’t helping the planet to stay healthy either, Unilever goes on. Consuming, farming and planting the same foods again and again poses a threat to food security, so our food system is less resilient to pests or the impacts of climate change.

It’s also linked to a decline in plant and animal diversity, with grave consequences for our fragile natural ecosystems. WWF’s Living Planet Report, published in October 2018, found that wildlife populations have declined by 60% globally in less than 50 years. And our food system is the biggest contributor to biodiversity loss, causing more environmental damage than transport or energy.

With a predicted 10 billion mouths to feed by 2050 adding to the pressure, Unilever says it believes there’s a compelling case for making food choices that reduce the impact our plates have on the planet - and that’s what a new report from Unilever brand Knorr sets out to do.

Knorr has teamed up with WWF-UK, plus leading scientists, nutritionists and agricultural experts, to compile the Future 50 Foods report.

The report features 50 nutritious plant-based ingredients – some familiar to many, some less well known – but all seleced based on their nutritional value and relative impact on the environment.

from cactus to kale, parsley roots to pumpkin flowers, some have higher yields than similar crops, making them an attractive option for smallholder farmers. Meanwhile several are tolerant of challenging weather and environmental conditions, meaning they could prove invaluable in the face of growing climate uncertainty.

Through its products, promotions and programmes, Knorr plans to make these foods more accessible for audiences all over the world. The brand is working with leading retailers to ensure that a wider variety of plant-based foods are made available.

And for the past nine months, Knorr chefs have been experimenting with each of the 50 ingredients, to create recipes which will be shared online and in stores globally. The aim is to make using these foods tasty, easy and exciting.

“Unless we change the foods we eat and the way we grow them, it will be challenging to have enough food to feed us all well,” says Knorr Global Vice President April Redmond.

“Our ambition is to make it easier for people to eat a wider variety of foods that are good for us, good for the planet, and of course delicious at the same time.”