The Second Report on the State of the World's Plant Genetic Resources For
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The Second Report on THE STATE OF THE WORLD’s PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Second Report on THE STATE OF THE WORLD’s PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2010 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. ISBN 978-92-5-106534-1 All rights reserved. FAO encourages reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product. Non-commercial uses will be authorized free of charge upon request. Reproduction for resale or other commercial purposes, including educational purposes, may incur fees. Applications for permission to reproduce or disseminate FAO copyright materials and all other queries on rights and licences, should be addressed by e-mail to [email protected] or to the Chief, Publishing Policy and Support Branch, Office of Knowledge Exchange, Research and Extension, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy. © FAO 2010 Citation: FAO 2010. The Second Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome Foreword lant genetic resources for food and agriculture are playing an ever growing role 3on world food security and economic development. As an integral component of agricultural biodiversity, these resources are crucial for sustainable agricultural production intensification and ensure the livelihood of a large proportion of women and men who depend on agriculture. In a world where around one billion people go hungry every day, with an expectation of a world population of nine billion by 2050, countries must make greater efforts to promote the conservation and sustainable use of the plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Agriculture has a key role to play in reducing poverty and food insecurity in the world. The effects of longstanding underinvestment in agriculture, food security and rural development, spikes in food prices and the global financial and economic crisis have led to increased hunger and poverty in many developing countries. In the 21st century agriculture faces a number of challenges. It has to produce more food and fibre to meet the demand of a growing world population, mainly living in urban areas, while relying on a decreasing rural labour force. It has to produce more feedstock for a potentially huge bio-energy market and to contribute to overall development in the many agriculture-dependent developing countries, while adopting more efficient and sustainable production methods. Natural resources are also facing increasing pressure at the global, regional and local levels. In addition, climate change is threatening to increase the number of hungry people even further in the future, and creating new and difficult challenges for agriculture. While the effects of climate change are only beginning to be felt, there is general agreement that unless appropriate measures are taken, their future impact will be enormous. Plant genetic resources that are also threatened by it, are the raw materials to improve the capacity of crops to respond to climate change and must be protected. An enhanced use of plant genetic diversity is essential to address these and other future challenges. The Second Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture provides a comprehensive picture of the global situation and trends regarding the conservation and use of plant genetic resources. The report was endorsed by the intergovernmental Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in 2009 as the authoritative assessment of the sector and a basis for updating the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. The report was prepared with the active participation of member countries as well as the public and private sectors. It describes the most significant changes that have occurred since the publication of the first report in 1998 and focuses on the major gaps and needs which will serve countries and the world community to set future priorities for the conservation and sustainable utilization of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. The report emphasizes the importance of an integrated approach to the management of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. It points out the need to secure broad diversity of crop plants, including their wild relatives and underutilized species, in accessible conservation systems, and to increase capacities for plant breeding and seed delivery worldwide in order to tackle the challenges of climate change and food insecurity. iii I hope and trust that the information in this report will be used as the basis for policy and technical decisions to strengthen national efforts to conserve and utilize the treasures incorporated in the world’s plant genetic resources to address the urgent problems faced by agriculture today and tomorrow. Jacques Diouf FAO Director-General iv Contents Preface xi Acknowledgements xiii Executive summary xvii Chapter 1 The state of diversity 1.1 Introduction 3 1.2 Diversity within and between plant species 3 1.2.1 Changes in the status of on-farm managed diversity 4 1.2.2 Changes in the status of diversity in ex situ collections 4 1.2.3 Changes in the status of crop wild relatives 9 1.2.3.1 Molecular technologies 9 1.2.3.2 Geographic information systems 11 1.2.3.3 Information and communication technologies 14 1.3 Genetic vulnerability and erosion 15 1.3.1 Trends in genetic vulnerability and erosion 15 1.3.2 Indicators of genetic erosion and vulnerability 17 1.4 Interdependence 17 1.5 Changes since the first State of the World report was published 22 1.6 Gaps and needs 22 Chapter 2 The state of in situ management 2.1 Introduction 31 2.2 Conservation and management of PGRFA in wild ecosystems 31 2.2.1 Inventory and state of knowledge 31 2.2.2 In situ conservation of crop wild relatives in protected areas 33 2.2.3 In situ conservation of PGRFA outside protected areas 35 2.2.4 Global system for in situ conservation areas 35 2.3 On-farm management of PGRFA in agricultural production systems 36 2.3.1 Amount and distribution of crop genetic diversity in production systems 36 2.3.2 Management practices for diversity maintenance 40 2.3.3 Farmers as custodians of diversity 41 2.3.4 Options to support the conservation of diversity in agricultural production systems 42 2.3.4.1 Adding value through characterizing local materials 42 2.3.4.2 Improving local materials through breeding and seed processing 42 2.3.4.3 Increasing consumer demand through market incentives and public awareness 42 2.3.4.4 Improved access to information and materials 43 2.3.4.5 Supportive policies, legislation and incentives 43 v 2.4 Global challenges to in situ conservation and management of PGRFA 43 2.4.1 Climate change 43 2.4.2 Habitat change 44 2.4.3 Invasive alien species 44 2.4.4 Replacement of traditional with modern varieties 44 2.5 Changes since the first State of the World report was published 44 2.6 Gaps and needs 45 Chapter 3 The state of ex situ conservation 3.1 Introduction 55 3.2 Overview of genebanks 55 3.3 Collecting 55 3.3.1 Situation in the regions 57 3.4 Types and status of collections 60 3.4.1 International and national genebanks 60 3.4.2 Crop species coverage 61 3.4.2.1 Major crops 61 3.4.2.2 Minor crops and wild relatives 67 3.4.3 Types of material stored 67 3.4.4 Source of material in genebanks 67 3.4.5 Gaps in collection coverage 69 3.4.6 Conservation of deoxyribonucleic acid samples and nucleotide sequence information 70 3.5 Storage facilities 71 3.6 Security of stored material 74 3.7 Regeneration 76 3.8 Documentation and characterization 77 3.8.1 Documentation 77 3.8.2 Characterization 80 3.9 Germplasm movement 83 3.10 Botanical gardens 85 3.10.1 Conservation facilities, statistics and examples 85 3.10.2 Documentation and germplasm exchange 86 3.11 Changes since the first State of the World report was published 87 3.12 Gaps and needs 87 Chapter 4 The state of use 4.1 Introduction 95 4.2 Germplasm distribution and use 95 4.3 Characterization and evaluation of PGRFA 96 4.4 Plant breeding capacity 98 vi 4.5 Crops and traits 103 4.6 Breeding approaches for use of PGRFA 103 4.6.1 Pre-breeding and base-broadening 104 4.6.2 Farmers’ participation and farmer breeding 104 4.7 Constraints to improved use of PGRFA 107 4.7.1 Human resources 107 4.7.2 Funding 107 4.7.3 Facilities 107 4.7.4 Cooperation and linkages 108 4.7.5 Information access and management 108 4.8 Production of seeds and planting material 108 4.9 Emerging challenges and opportunities 111 4.9.1 Use of PGRFA for sustainable agriculture and ecosystem services 111 4.9.2 Underutilized species 112 4.9.3 Biofuel crops 113 4.9.4 Health and dietary diversity 113 4.9.5 Climate change 114 4.10 Cultural aspects of PGRFA 115 4.11 Changes since the first State of