I’m a little late to the warm beer and stale sandwich that is Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture: roles and research priorities in the European Union. This report, issued by the European Academies Science Advisory Council, “draws on” a workshop organised by the Italian Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei and sets out to identify key priorities for research areas. Naturally these require support funding.
Success in tackling these research areas requires increased policy commitment to co-ordinated and sustained EU-wide programmes and improved collaboration between the relevant scientific disciplines (including genetics and genomics, plant sciences, ecology, social sciences). In addition there must be improved linkage between all the activities inherent in plant conservation, research and breeding and improved use of the scientific evidence to inform strategic development for agriculture and land use.
Bring it on, obviously.
That said, the report does seem to have had its sights set so firmly on high that it doesn’t have a lot to say for the small growers and gardeners that Europe generally tramples underfoot. For example, the report namechecks “On-farm managed diversity” and “Links between conservation and use” and has an informative section of genetic erosion. And yet, when it comes to “Constraints on use” there is no mention of the single biggest constraint in Europe: European legislation. The report does say:
In Europe, genetic erosion associated with the introduction of deliberately bred cultivars has been significant for many crops.
It doesn’t say that if you don’t want to grow the specific deliberately-bred varieties Europe lists as acceptable, you’re mostly out of luck. ((Pick and choose here to see what we’re talking about.))
That’s not to do the effort down completely. There are some good summaries of what plant genetic resources for food and agriculture are all about, and their role in plant breeding, climate change and so on. The summaries of access and benefit sharing, and an overview of the European scene for PGRFA are worthwhile too.
In fact, as reference document, this report is pretty handy. It could, however, have issued a clear call to open up Europe’s seed markets to genuine diversity.
I wonder why it didn’t.