Plants are vital for the development of human society. They are the
key to food security, providing us with cereals and other foods in
addition to feeding the livestock that produce milk, meat and eggs
and provide farm power. The wise use of plant genetic resources can
help eradicate poverty, both by lowering the price of food and other
commodities and by raising and diversifying the incomes of producers
and processors. They also protect and enhance the environment,
for example by preventing erosion and desertification and by
absorbing atmospheric carbon.
The multiple uses of plants depend on a crucial characteristic of plant
life, its diversity. Diversity exists at three main levels: the combinations
of species that make up different ecosystems, the number of different
species, and the different combinations of genes in species. All
three levels help sustain agricultural systems, as well as ensure their
productivity. Genetic diversity, in particular, provides species with the
ability to adapt to changing stresses, such as pests and diseases or
drought.
Today, the diversity of the Earth’s plant life is under threat as never
before. In agriculture, the widespread adoption of a few improved
varieties has narrowed the genetic
base of important food crops and led
to the disappearance of hundreds of
landraces. In the forests, up to 8% of
all plant species are expected to disappear
over the next 25 years as
deforestation continues.
Conserving and using plant genetic
diversity is vital to meeting the world’s
future development needs. The earth’s
population is predicted to double, perhaps
even triple, before it stabilizes
late in the 21st century. This will place
enormous pressure on the environment,
and will require a huge increase
in the production of food and non-food
commodities.
key to food security, providing us with cereals and other foods in
addition to feeding the livestock that produce milk, meat and eggs
and provide farm power. The wise use of plant genetic resources can
help eradicate poverty, both by lowering the price of food and other
commodities and by raising and diversifying the incomes of producers
and processors. They also protect and enhance the environment,
for example by preventing erosion and desertification and by
absorbing atmospheric carbon.
The multiple uses of plants depend on a crucial characteristic of plant
life, its diversity. Diversity exists at three main levels: the combinations
of species that make up different ecosystems, the number of different
species, and the different combinations of genes in species. All
three levels help sustain agricultural systems, as well as ensure their
productivity. Genetic diversity, in particular, provides species with the
ability to adapt to changing stresses, such as pests and diseases or
drought.
Today, the diversity of the Earth’s plant life is under threat as never
before. In agriculture, the widespread adoption of a few improved
varieties has narrowed the genetic
base of important food crops and led
to the disappearance of hundreds of
landraces. In the forests, up to 8% of
all plant species are expected to disappear
over the next 25 years as
deforestation continues.
Conserving and using plant genetic
diversity is vital to meeting the world’s
future development needs. The earth’s
population is predicted to double, perhaps
even triple, before it stabilizes
late in the 21st century. This will place
enormous pressure on the environment,
and will require a huge increase
in the production of food and non-food
commodities.
