In 2018/2019, the global production of wheat was estimated at 735 million tons, and allohexaploid bread wheat (
Triticum aestivum L.) accounted for around 94% of total output. In 2017/2018, the production of allotetraploid durum wheat
Triticum durum L. reached around 37.5 million tons with more than a 5% share of the global output [
1,
2]. Small quantities of other wheat species, including allohexaploid spelt (
Triticum spelta L.), allotetraploid emmer (
Triticum dicoccon Schrank) and diploid einkorn (
Triticum monococcum L.), are grown in selected regions of the world, including the European Union, Balkans and the Indian subcontinent [
3]. Despite the growing demand for high-quality food products, yield continues to be the main determinant of profitability in cereal production. The maximization of yield requires progress in breeding methods. High-yielding crop varieties are often characterized by low nutritional quality due to low levels of protein, minerals (in particular Fe and Zn) and selected nutraceuticals [
4,
5]. However, it should be noted that high-yielding bread wheat varieties with high contents of selected phytochemicals in grain have been described by Ward et al. [
6]. For this reason, modern cereals are becoming less suitable for the production of functional foods. The Green Revolution provided only a short-term solution to global hunger. The resulting increase in food production was not accompanied by an improvement in the nutritional quality of food [
7]. Hidden hunger and malnutrition affect more than two billion people around the world [
8]. According to Bouis and Welch [
9], malnutrition is caused by dysfunctional food systems that cannot supply all the nutrients and health-promoting factors required for human life in a sustainable way. In their opinion, diets deficient in vitamins and essential nutrients are the chief cause of malnutrition. Magnesium, zinc and iron are found mainly in the aleurone layer of cereal kernels. Cereal products are a vital source of the above elements and trace minerals that are essential for human health [
10,
11]. A balanced diet should contain the optimal proportions of seven macro elements (Na, K, Ca, Mg, S, P and Cl) and ten essential trace elements (Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, I, F, Se, Mo, Co and B) [
11]. Micro element deficiencies are noted not only in developing countries where cereals are staple foods, but are observed increasingly often in developed countries [
12,
13]. Human diets are most deficient in iron, zinc and vitamin A [
14]. According to the WHO, iron deficiency is responsible for 74% of the cases of anemia in children [
15]. The availability of iron from ferrous sulfate, one of the most widely used iron fortifiers in cereal grain, is relatively low [
16]. Zinc deficiency poses a serious problem in many developing countries, and it is regarded as the fifth most common risk factor for disease in children, especially diarrhea and pneumonia, that can contribute to high mortality rates in underdeveloped regions [
17]. According to the International Zinc Association, 49% of the world’s population suffers from zinc deficiency [
18]. Insufficient zinc intake contributes to growth disorders, sexual dysfunctions (hypogonadism, hypospermia), hair loss, skin disorders, nyctalopia and loss of appetite [
19,
20]. Plant breeders continue to search for new genetic sources of minerals that are essential in human nutrition. However, the mineral profile of grain can vary across geographic locations [
21]. The interest in spelt wheat (
T. spelta) has been recently revived due to the development of alternative farming techniques and efforts aiming to preserve the biodiversity of agricultural ecosystems. The area under spelt has increased in response to the overproduction of the basic cereals, the introduction of environmentally-friendly cultivation methods and the growing demand for new foods with health-promoting properties [
22]. According to Kohajdová and Karovicová [
23], spelt wheat has high nutritional value on account of its composition and high content of protein, lipids and crude fiber. Spelt grain is more abundant in iron, zinc, copper, magnesium, potassium, sodium and selenium than bread wheat [
24,
25]. Spelt-based foods deliver greater health benefits than those made from modern wheat varieties [
26]. The genetic distance between spelt and bread wheat is relatively small, which contributes to the production of stable hybrids, where bread wheat is used as a source material for breeding modern spelt varieties. Bread wheat and spelt are allohexaploid cereals with the same genome, AABBDD. Cytogenetic and phylogenetic analyses of
T. spelta and
T. aestivum revealed considerable similarities in their chromosomal structure and homology. It is generally believed that hexaploid wheat originated from the hybridization of hulled tetraploid emmer and
Aegilops tauschii (genomes DD), and that the nascent hexaploid was spelt, which evolved into free-threshing wheat through mutations [
27]. Hybrids between
T. aestivum and
T. spelta could offer an interesting alternative by eliminating the adverse qualities of spelt and improving the nutritional value of bread wheat [
28]. However, the resulting benefits have not been studied extensively to date. The discussed hybrids are characterized by similar threshability and resistance to lodging to bread wheat, and they could also constitute promising source materials for breeding new wheat varieties. Spelt is a valuable source of genes for breeding wheat varieties with increased Zn and Fe contents [
29]. Genetic biofortification (and, consequently, plant breeding) is a widely accepted strategy and the most sustainable approach to minimizing mineral and nutrient deficiencies, especially low levels of micro elements, such as Fe and Zn [
30]. F
1 hybrids produced by crossing bread wheat and spelt demonstrated considerable heterosis effects on grain yield, the number of grains per spike, and grain weight [
31].
The aim of this study was to compare the content of macro elements and micro elements in the grain of T. aestivum and T. spelta hybrids and their parental forms and to determine whether the crossbreeding of both species could contribute to improving the nutritional quality of wheat.