Since CIP’s founding 30 years ago, the conservation and effective use of root and tuber crop genetic resources (biodiversity) has been at the core of its continuum of research activities. CIP’s dedication to this part of its mission was reflected last year with the inauguration of its new state-of-the-art biodiversity complex.

In close collaboration with its national partners, CIP scientists have been assembling the world’s largest reservoir of root and tuber crop genetic material. The CIP genebank currently holds in trust for the world community approximately 2,000 wild and 4,000 cultivated potato samples, more than 6,000 of sweetpotato and over 1,000 of other Andean root and tuber crops. These crops are particularly important in impoverished and marginal environments where many of the world’s poorest people live. CIP has distributed these germplasm holdings to users worldwide, with developing countries receiving most samples.

The essential plant breeding effort that underpins CIP’s ability to get the right root and tuber crop varieties to the right locations at the right time depends greatly on both the degree of access researchers have to diverse sources of genetic diversity and on their ability to conserve and distribute them efficiently.

GOALS. The over-arching goal of the CIP biodiversity project is to secure the long-term conservation, characterization, and availability of root and tuber crop genetic resources through a strengthened system of global and regional collaborative research that will:

• analyze genetic diversity and geographic distribution of biodiversity in wild and cultivated root and tuber crop species
• develop and improve complementary conservation methods including linkages with the conservation of biodiversity carried out by farmers (in situ/on-farm conservation), and developing and applying methods for rationalizing genebank collections (coverage, redundancies, identity, core collections)
• promote access and use of genebank holdings through the identification of new sources of desirable traits, and distribution of healthy clonal material and seed stocks
• undertake institution building on policy and technical issues pertaining to genetic resources and the development/updating of genetic resources information and documentation systems

The objectives of the project are achieved through prioritized activities organized into four subprojects:

• conservation, comprising the management of seed, field, and in vitro genebanks, development of links to on-farm conservation, and production of healthy clones for distribution
• assessment of diversity at geographic and genetic levels and systematic preliminary evaluations for priority traits
• collaboration on policies and technical issues, including access and benefit sharing
• information on and documentation of root and tuber genetic resources

IMPACT. Through this project, the globally recognized expertise of CIP’s germplasm research capabilities and facilities will produce:

• well-characterized and accessible root and tuber crop collections
• information on conservation components and geographic and genetic patterns of biodiversity
• new sources of desirable traits with potential value to food security and poverty alleviation
• strategies on policy and technical issues for national and international genebanks dealing with root and tuber crops

Reflecting the pivotal role of genetic resources in CIP’s research portfolio, this project draws from other CIP projects by utilizing modern genetic, bioinformatic, and biogeographic technologies to achieve many of its objectives. Within CIP’s integrated gene and natural resource management dynamics, the project’s chief products (information and genetic material) are provided to CIP projects that deal with gene discovery and evaluation as well as to those that deal with breeding and variety development and other related activities. With the collections and related information well managed within an increasingly organized system, scientists can more effectively access and utilize root and tuber crop genetic resources.

Since CIP’s founding 30 years ago, the conservation and effective use of root and tuber crop genetic resources has been at the core of its continuum of research activities.

For more information, please contact Dr. David Tay, Germplasm Conservation and Characterization Division Leader, Apartado 1558, Lima 12, Peru, or at d.tay@cgiar.org