The Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB) welcomed home 2,228 vegetable seeds from the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) in Tainan, Taiwan at the Seed Homecoming Ceremony on September 25, 2024.
The accessions, composed of seeds of various unique and now-lost vegetable varieties, were collected between the 1970s to early 2000s from different regions in the Philippines and had been deposited over 10 years ago at WorldVeg for "safety duplication."
This means creating backup copies of the crop collections and storing them in multiple safe locations to conserve them for future generations in case something happens to the original resources.
Through the Taiwan Asia Vegetable Initiative (TAsVI), the seeds were returned to the Philippines and placed under the care of the National Plant Genetic Resources Laboratory (NPGRL) of IPB.
"By returning native seeds to their regions of origin, we can enhance local ecosystems, restore traditional agricultural practices, and empower local communities," IPB Director Elmer E. Enicola said in his welcome remarks.
Dr. Liwayway M. Engle, former head of the Genetic Resources and Seed Unit of WorldVeg, recounted the journey from collection to the seeds' repatriation.
She said that as the world faces the loss of its genetic resources with many plant varieties slowly disappearing, "it is important to recollect and take care of what we have."
In his message, Chancellor Jose V. Camacho, Jr. described genetic resources as truly "priceless." He explained that the importance of efforts to preserve them has never been more apparent "as the world faces challenges such as climate change impacts and global food insecurity."
Concurring with this was National Scientist Emil Q. Javier, founding director of IPB and former director of WorldVeg. According to him, "The future of agriculture depends on biodiversity. Therefore, genetic resources are always very, very important."
Meanwhile, Dr. Herminingilda A. Gabertan, assistant director for Research Development and Production Support Services of the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI); Dr. Maarten van Zonneveld, head of Genetic Resources at WorldVeg; and Minister Dustin Teng-shi Yang, deputy representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines (TECO) each reaffirmed their support of the initiative and underscored the importance of collaboration in addressing the world's problems.
Concluding the ceremony, TAsVI project leader and IPB university researcher Gerlie P. Antesco remarked that the thousands of accessions represent not just numbers, but also years of dedication and collective efforts, which she hoped will "continue to bear fruits for generations to come."
"A lot of the vegetable varieties have gone missing, so the thousands of seeds returning home through the TAsVI project will be a big help for crop improvement," Antesco explained.
The repatriated seeds include soybean, onion, Malabar spinach, ash gourd, lablab, bottle gourd, luffa, bitter gourd, tomato, pepper, black gram, yardlong bean, cowpea, eggplant, field mustard, blue ternate, cabbage, mungbean, watermelon, and malunggay.
They will be regenerated at IPB NPGRL and studied closely from seedling to post-harvest stage.
Beyond this, NPGRL will continue to work hand in hand with local communities in setting up their community seed banks as well as to promote the value of sustainable seed systems and crop biodiversity in the Philippines.
Source: UPLB.edu