ExpectedOutcome:
Activities under this topic seek to preserve biodiversity and thereby contribute to the objectives of the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030 and the upcoming post 2020 global biodiversity framework. By increasing agrobiodiversity, activities will contribute to food security, adaptation of the agricultural production to the effects of climate change, and thereby support implementation of the farm to fork strategy, the common agricultural policy and the EU climate policy under the European Green Deal.
Projects funded under this topic are expected to contribute to all of the following outcomes:
- More effectiveness measures for the conservation of Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) due to increased knowledge and systematic monitoring and documentation of the diversity, the threats and the conservation status of CWR;
- Conservation of CWR is improved due to a) better coverage of CWR in gene banks, b) the establishment of genetic reserves for in situ conservation, and c) enhanced genetic characterisation of CWRs;
- Knowledge on valuable traits, such as tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses or nutritional properties is more easily available to breeders and accelerates the breeding of more resilient crop varieties;
- Greater use of CWR in pre-breeding and breeding activities, both in formal and on-farm crop improvement programmes;
- Farmers are more aware of the value of CWRs and have improved access to varieties and cultivars with high resilience and/or adapted to marginal lands.
Scope:
Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) – also referred to as the wild cousins of cultivated crops - are a key asset for agrobiodiversity, sustainable agriculture and food security overall. CRWs contain genes for a multitude of useful traits such as tolerance to pest and diseases, resource efficiency and adaptability to more extreme weather conditions or nutritional quality. Their inherent genetic diversity together with the associated diversity of microbiota is a vast resource for developing more productive, nutritious and resilient crop varieties and for diversifying farming systems.
Despite their value, a wide range of CWRs are threatened and face pressures, e.g., from intensive agriculture, urbanisation, pollution and the effects of climate change. At the same time, the conservation and use of CWRs in breeding lags significantly behind the one of main crops. It is estimated that for about 30% taxa associated with 63 crops, no germplasm accessions exist and that about 95% of CWR taxa are underrepresented in genetic resources collections. As a consequence, knowledge is lacking about the diversity that exists and precisely how that diversity may be used for crop improvement and in farming.
More systematic efforts are needed to improve the conservation of CWR in –situ and ex-situ and increase their use in plant breeding and farming.
Proposals should:
- review and increase our knowledge on the diversity, the conservation status (both in situ and ex situ), the threats, monitoring and the utilization of CWR in Europe; due account should be taken of the local knowledge of farmers, e.g., as regards the specific attributes of CWR resources, their integration in agro-ecosystems and methods for their management on-farm;
- promote the breath of taxa and genetic diversity of CWR in gene bank collections and improve their description and geno- and phenotypic characterisation;
- set-up pilots of genetic reserves for CWR under different types of management regimes and pedo-climatic conditions, and develop models for their long-term viability;
- unravel the genetic basis of valuable traits of CWR such as the resilience to different biotic and abiotic stresses or nutritional quality;
- develop high-quality genomic resources to promote the use of CWR in pre-breeding and breeding activities of formal and on-farm crop improvement programmes;
- promote the on-farm management and conservation of CRW genetic resources taking into account the adaptation of CWR to local conditions;
- carry out training activities and increase awareness of breeders, farmers, consumers and the various actors in value chains (e.g., the agri-food industry) about the value of CWR, including by carrying out on-farm demonstrations.
Work under this topic should be carried out in various pedo-climatic zones[1] and benefit both conventional and organic farming as reflected in the expertise of the consortia. Proposals must implement the “multi-actor approach”, and build partnerships across research, conservation, breeding, farming and business sectors, considering a balanced representation of partners from within the EU and Associated Countries. They should also demonstrate a sound representation of SSH disciplines.
[1]https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/figures/biogeographical-regions…
