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Many of the foods we cherish the most – bananas and potatoes, for example – don’t reproduce through seeds. They are propagated through vegetative means like tubers, suckers, and cuttings.

For this reason, the diversity of these...

On 19 September, scientists, policymakers and other crop diversity enthusiasts, flocked to Mindspace in Williamsburg, one of Brooklyn’s foodiest neighborhoods, to address one of the most pressing challenges of our time—how to...

The climate crisis is upon us, and its effects are becoming impossible to ignore. Extreme heatwaves, more frequent floods, and prolonged droughts are wreaking havoc on our planet. Including our food supply: agriculture depends on...

Nazarov Arken doesn’t hesitate when asked about the problems facing alfalfa growers like himself.

“There’s our problem,” said the farmer from Yenbek in southeastern Kazakhstan, squinting through the late-summer haze at some...

If you have ever eaten fish and chips in the north of England, you will likely have been confronted with a side order of mushy peas. Depending on where you come from, these are either a delicacy or hideous slop destined for the...

Many people will be familiar with the old adage, “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” But life did not give us lemons. The lemon is not a naturally occurring fruit, but a cross between a sour orange and a citron. And a sour...

The Biodiversity for Opportunities, Livelihoods and Development (BOLD) Project workshop held in Bonn, Germany in May 2023 marked a significant milestone. It was the first time since the start of BOLD over a year ago that project...

In the highlands of Peru, a group of farmers safeguard their livelihoods and those of future generations. They are conserving the diversity of their staple food: the potato.

Some members of AGUAPAN (Association of Guardians of...

Joy Mugisha helped establish a seedbank in her village over a decade ago. One of more than twenty in Uganda, the Kiziba community seedbank serves as a model for conserving crop diversity at the community level, enhancing the...

The people of rural India love their bajra chapatis. These flatbreads made of pearl millet flour are a highly nutritious staple in the diet of millions of Indians. And farmers love pearl millet because it will grow where other...