![]() ![]() He says a warming world is a key reason to preserve crop diversity. Stefan Schmitz runs the Crop Trust, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving global food security. The Arctic is warming faster than anywhere else on Earth. You used to be able to walk over the fjord here in winter, but the sea ice is long gone. Svalbard's prosperity was forged out of these mines, but, of course, the irony is that the impact of burning this coal is what threatens Svalbard's very future. The world, and especially the Arctic, will be a very different place then. JOHN BEVIR: This experiment in the mine has another 61 years to run. So we will be, by conserving the seeds, also conserve the type of diseases which was present the seeds were put in here. So, we also look at how the pathogenic fungi, they will survive. It will be tested for if there have been any changes.Īnd with all seeds, there's also coming some microorganisms which are following the seed naturally. ![]() MICHAEL LYNGKJAER, Research Team Leader, NordGen: Every fifth year, the - one box is taken out, opened, and then the seeds will be tested for viability. Michael Lyngkjaer is using the work done by his predecessors to learn more about preserving crops and all that comes with them. In 1984, the Nordic gene bank started an experiment as unique as the location. In one of Svalbard's abandoned coal mines, we get a rare chance to see the original, primitive vault. That, by chance, is 89 degrees warmer than here.Īlthough the vault is kept artificially chilled, Svalbard's permafrost acts as a good backup.Īnd it was that permafrost that started this whole project. ![]() JOHN BEVIR: The average temperature in Benin at this time of year is 89 degrees. It's important to duplicate, so that, if anything happens to what we are conserving in our country, we can get it back from the vault easily to regenerate. It changed the inside temperature of the freezer.Īnd this affects the germination of the seeds.Īnd then we lost a lot of our accessions. INNOCENT DOSSOU AMINON: It's important to be here to prevent any catastrophe in future. They're scanned to check that nothing unwanted ends up in the vault.Īpart from any doomsday scenarios, the vault acts as insurance against more day-to-day issues like power outages in developing countries. The collection now stands just short of 1.2 million varieties in total. There are regular deposits from gene banks in every corner of the globe. JOHN BEVIR: Maize, rice and soybeans are some of the crops being added, and they're in good company. INNOCENT DOSSOU AMINON: If anything happened in our place, we can come back and request some seeds to regenerate for the farmers. With him, he's brought his country's first seed deposits. He has made the 5,000-mile journey from West Africa to the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. JOHN BEVIR: Innocent Dossou Aminon runs the gene bank in Benin. INNOCENT DOSSOU AMINON, Gene Bank Director: It's very important. JOHN BEVIR: It's known by some as the doomsday vault and often referred to as the ultimate insurance policy, buried deep in the side of a mountain, itself in the Arctic Circle, the most diverse collection of food crop seeds in the world. We sent special correspondent John Bevir to the northernmost settlement on Earth to find out more about the future of food. With global warming and an ever-growing population, those who run the vault in Svalbard, Norway, say its presence is more important than ever. It provides scientists with the tools they need to breed plants able to cope with a changing world. GEOFF BENNETT: When you think of fresh produce and fields of grain, the Arctic may not spring to mind, but just 800 miles from the North Pole, the Global Seed Vault holds emergency stockpiles of most of the world's crops. ![]()
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