United Nations Radio

Eleven developing countries will receive over half a million dollars to support efforts to conserve food and other genetic material from major crops.

FAO conserving crops

The announcement was made at a high-level meeting of the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources in Food and Agriculture currently taking place in Tunis.

The Food and Agriculture Organization says grants are to be awarded to projects in Egypt, Kenya, Costa Rica, India, Peru, Senegal, Uruguay, Nicaragua, Cuba, Tanzania and Morocco.

The projects include an on-farm protection of citrus agro-biodiversity in Egypt, the genetic enhancement and revitalization of finger millet in Kenya and the conservation of indigenous potato varieties in Peru.

FAO says it is the first time that funds have become available under the benefit-sharing scheme of the treaty designed to compensate farmers in developing countries for their role in conserving crop varieties.

According to FAO, there were once an estimated 10,000 types of food crops but today only 150 crops feed most of the world's population.

It says just 12 crops provide 80 per cent of dietary energy from plants, with rice, wheat, maize and potato alone providing almost sixty per cent.

Diane Bailey, United Nations Radio

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