HarvestZinc Fertilizer Project is on-going under HarvestPlus Program in four Phases. The first 3 Phases of the project lasted for 9 years, from 2008 to 2017. The 4th Phase was started on 1st of January 2018 and expected to take 3 years.

In the period of 2008 to 2017, the project had accomplished its objectives and produced novel results and insights of practical relevance and importance. The results reveal the feasibility of the fertilizer strategy and its vast potential in alleviating deficiencies of zinc (Zn), iodine (I), iron (Fe) and selenium (Se) and positively impact on human health. The phase 3 of the project demonstrated marked increases in iodine concentrations in grains of rice, maize and wheat after foliar spray of iodine which highlight the great potential of agronomy (e.g., fertilizer strategy) for agronomic biofortification of cereal crops with iodine like zinc and selenium. 

The "Zinc Days" event is a major collaborative effort of the project to contribute to missions and goals of the project. This event represents an important delivery activity of the project. "Zinc Days" event is a useful forum for farmers, agronomists and other end-users, and provides valuable basic information through oral presentations and educational printed materials. "Zinc Days" events cover also talks on iodine, iron and selenium. 

HarvestPlus program seeks to reduce micronutrient malnutrition among the poor by breeding staple food crops that are rich in micronutrients through a process called biofortification. This takes advantage of the consistent daily consumption of large amounts of staple food crops by the poor in developing countries, especially women and children, who are most at risk for micronutrient malnutrition.

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