According to third Report on State of World’s Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, these Nine crops include Sugarcane, maize, rice, wheat, potatoes, soybeans, oil palm, sugar beet, and cassava.
Other Key findings of Report related to crop diversity:
- Reduce Plant Diversity: Diversity at both species and variety levels is being replaced by uniformity in agricultural marketplace.
- To support commercial production systems, varieties are bred to meet the strict needs of high-input production, industrial processing and demanding market standards.
- Loss of Farmer Varieties & Landraces (FV/LR)
- Highest percentage of threatened diversity was found in southern Africa, followed by Caribbean and Western Asia.
- Southern Asia, Australia & New Zealand had least genetic erosion.
- On-Farm Conservation of Plant Diversity: Over 50% of FV/LRs across five agro ecological zones in India are considered threatened, requiring urgent conservation measures.
- Challenge to Ex-Situ Conservation of Plant Genetic diversity: Sporadic funding, lack of qualified staff & Political support, and poor infrastructure.
Recommendations for Enhancing Crop/plant diversity:
- Seed Policy: Need to develop national seed policies that support diverse cropping systems.
- Increased public and private sector funding: For Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
- Improve data sharing and standardization: To enhance research efficiency.
- Promote modern biotechnologies for improved crop breeding.
Efforts taken for conserving Crop Diversity
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