Peru's Potato Center Deposits a Further 1,027 Accessions in the Svalbard Seed Vault on October 26
News on October 26 said that the International Potato Center, based in Peru, has deposited a further 1,027 accessions in Norway's Svalbard Global Seed Vault to back up Peru's potato diversity. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, located in the Arctic Svalbard archipelago, is known as the “doomsday seed vault” for the world's crops; its role is to preserve a final backup for global agriculture if germplasm resources are lost to war, natural disaster, climate risks or other threats. Peru's ambassador to Norway, Rolando Ruiz Rosas Cateriano, witnessed the deposit, underscoring Peru's commitment to protecting its precious plant genetic resources. The potato originates in the Andean mountains of South America, and Peru is one of the countries with the richest potato diversity in the world; over thousands of years local farmers have bred and preserved large numbers of landraces, which carry valuable traits such as resistance to pests and disease, cold tolerance and drought tolerance, and are important material for future breeding. The International Potato Center said the new backup brings the backed-up proportion of its collection to 91%, giving researchers and breeders a firmer safeguard. By preserving these seeds, scientists can breed new varieties better able to withstand pests, disease and the effects of climate change, helping to safeguard future food security. For ordinary readers, the seed vault story is a reminder that the potato varieties on the table are not to be taken for granted: behind them lie thousands of years of farming wisdom and continuing scientific conservation work.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 斯瓦尔巴全球种子库（资料图）。摄影：Michael Major for Crop Trust，CC BY-SA 2.0，取自 Wikimedia Commons。Photo: Svalbard Global Seed Vault (file photo). Credit: Michael Major for Crop Trust, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
