Conserving Traditional Crop Varieties As a Sustainable Approach to Agriculture

Modern agriculture, which seeks high output as its sole purpose, depends on new crop varieties developed by modern technology. This has led to all sorts of problems because every new variety is introduced with a set of standardised or normalised cultivation technologies in which chemical fertilisers and pesticides are indispensable. Not only has modern agriculture brought problems of food safety and environmental pollution, it has also resulted in problems such as pests and diseases because new varieties are often unsuited to local climate and environment. In contrast, there are many advantages in the conservation of traditional crop varieties which can enhance the biodiversity of the farmland, increase output and guarantee food security. It is also an important factor in the development of ecological agriculture.

This issue of the E-newsletter explores the importance and advantages of conserving traditional crop varieties and the problems brought by new varieties developed by modern agriculture. Governments around the world have been promoting cultivation of foreign crop varieties. However, in places such as Mainland China, Vietnam and Mexico, there are cases of farmers who have chosen to continue with or return to the cultivation of traditional crop varieties. In Liufang Village of Liping County, Guizhou, villagers have returned to cultivating traditional varieties of rice after cultivating hybrid rice for a number of years. In Wayao Village of the suburban district of Guiyang, Guizhou, a villager narrates the story of an ancestor who got hold of a variety of bean after much hardship. This traditional variety of bean has been passed on for generations. Her views and reservations about the cultivation of foreign crop varieties allow us a glimpse of the importance of traditional crop varieties to farmers' livelihoods.