What is the World Food Day?

Barbara Becker: To commemorate the founding of The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) in 1945 on the 16th October every year, in many countries across the world, discussions are held on a specific aspect of the world's food resources. This year the theme is biodiversity for food security (2). The symposium is being held at ETH today because the 16th falls on a Saturday this year.

Barbara Becker: "Action on the conservation of genetic resources of animals is around ten years behindhand compared to that of plant life." large

Why was biodiversity chosen as the focus of this year's World Food Day?

Becker: Biological diversity is of special interest just now because this year the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture has come into force (3). This important international agreement regulates access to and exchange of genetic material for food and agriculture.

What will the consequences of this agreement be?

Until now the exploitation of biological species, especially those cultivated in agriculture, was based on the principle of a "common heritage". This concept was replaced a few years ago by that of national sovereignty. This naturally brought with it the necessity to regulate access to and use of genetic resources between states-of seed, for example.

What led to this change?

It grew out of an adjustment between the gene rich states of the south and the financially and technology rich states of the north. Economic and national interests lie at the bottom of this.

Why are animals at the centre of today's symposium?

Because demand for animal products will grow disproportionately over the coming decades, far more than the demand for plant products. By about 2030 global consumption of meat will be twice as high as it was in 2000. This is primarily a consequence of urbanisation, especially in developing economies. In addition, there is a greater need for research and conservation of of animal genetic resources, as compared to plant genetic resources. In Peru, for example, where I worked for some years, there have been conservation programmes for the diversity of potato varieties for nearly 15 years. Traditional varieties are still conserved in today's structure of smallholding farms. It is only in recent years that attention has been drawn to the biodiversity of domestic animals, where we are about ten years behind compared to crop diversity. This means that there is urgent call for action today to preserve stocks of endangered animal breeds.

Awing to the growing tendency of urbanisation in developing countries, global consumption of meat will double by 2030 (Picture: herdsman in Kenya). large

Is the situation really so precarious?

Of the roughly 6,000 breeds of domestic animal species in the world, about 300 have become extinct over the past 15 to 20 years. One or two more disappear every week.

What are the reasons for this extinction?

The main reason lies in the demand for increased productivity. In industrialised intensive agriculture the former diversity of locally adapted breeds and species is replaced by breeds that produce maximum meat or milk yields. Another reason for the disappearance of traditional breeds is that draught animals like horses and oxen are of far less importance in mechanised agriculture than animals that are bred solely to produce milk or meat.

Does that mean that we're losing species here in Switzerland, too?

Of the 90 domesticated animal breeds still used in Switzerland, comprising horses, cows, pigs, sheep and goats, 13 are in danger of becoming extinct and are addressed in a conservation programme. Programmes like these are also supported by non-governmental organisations, such as "Pro Specie Rara“ (4).

What is the economic benefit of such programmes?

The principal driver of the green revolution the only thing that counted was higher yields. Therefore high yielding varieties replaced the former crop diversity. Today, especially when it comes to crop diversity, we focus more on the quality of food, for example on specific micronutrients. The "Golden Rice“ (5) developed at ETH, for example, is to prodvide as much vitamin A as possible. In order to introduce such quality attributes into the most important varieties of today's crops, we depend on gene banks.

So we need large gene banks, in order to maintain biodiversity?

The problem with such ex-situ conservation in tissue culture and gene banks is the high cost of storage and regular reproduction. This is why we need an increase of in-situ conservation in parallel by supporting local farmers in the region of origin to cultivate endangered varieties. Broadly speaking, today's models of research finance are directed at innovative projects, and it is always difficult to find funding for programmes aimed at conservation. This is why a number of countries, including Switzerland, together with other sponsors, such as Syngenta, have set up a global fund for the conservation of crop diversity(6), which will be presented at today's symposium.