The governance of seed systems: Key to new and useful genetic variation

Mauricio R. Bellon

Bioversity International

Invited presentation at the Colloque FRB “Les Ressources Génétiques face aux nouveaux enjeux environnementaux, économiques et sociétaux.”

Montpellier, France, September 22, 2011

The seed (planting material)

The most important input for agriculture Both an input and an output Seeds have private and public characteristics and

values: private, those that cannot be consumed by two farm

households at once, grain, fodder and other traits produced in each farm household’s crop

public, those related to its genetic attributes, including its contribution to genetic diversity, and occur at different scales from local to global

Seed systems

The different ways farmers obtain seed through time and space Transactions: sale, barter, gift, loan, etc. Social relations: family, friends, strangers,

commercial agents, Information & knowledge: on identity, traits,

performance, origin, variability Rules: who can get seed and under what

circumstances Social structures that enforce the rules Practices: how seed is kept, selected, transported

The public value of seed systems

The structure and functioning of seed systems fundamental to understand, maintain and influence the generation of useful genetic variation in agricultural systems (public value) Influence which alleles and genotypes pass from

one generation to the next Influence the movement of and location where a

crop is planted and hence the specific natural selection pressures it is exposed to

Foster gene flow

“Traditional” seed systems

Historically seed systems have been: In the hands of farmers and communities Open: seed can come in and out of the system, farmers

incorporate, keep, discard and share seed Decentralized: farmers and communities make different

and independent decisions in multiple locations, environments and situations

Local: the spatial scope of the system can be quite local, but can include long distances flows

“Traditional” seed systems (con’t)

Usually governed by cultural norms—reciprocity, fairness, for example: Seed should not be sold Only “good” farmers can get seed

Based on family and local social networks But can include village markets, strangers and the

formal seed system

Include experimentation and allows innovation Private and public characteristics and

benefits of seed closely linked

Maize agro-climatic environment

WL DL WUMA H TotalGeneral characteristics

No. of seed lots (SL) 177 47 62 318 604

SL of landraces (%) 98.3 97.9 98.4 97.5 97.9

Average no SL/farmer 1.3 1.2 1.6 1.8 1.5*¶

SL saved by farmer (%, 2003) 75.7 85.1 82.3 72.6 75.5

If not saved, obtained from family, friends, neighbors 88.1 85.7 100.0 85.1 87.0

Number of years that a SL is saved 10.0 10.0 15.0 8.0 10.0‡§

SL obtained outside community historical 13.0 12.8 4.8 28.6 20.4†¶

SL obtained outside community 2003 1.7 0.0 0.0 6.6 3.7†¶

SL provided to other farmers 2002 25.4 23.4 29.0 18.2 21.9

SL provided outside the community 2002 1.7 4.3 0 3.8 2.8Farmers who experimented (%) 19.3 22.5 12.5 34.1 25.6†¶

Number of experimental SL (historical) 30 13 5 79 127

Experimental SL of improved varieties 10 4 1 4 19

Experimental SL retained 6 1 0 9 16SL of improved varieties retained 2 1 0 0 3

Source: Bellon et al. PNAS 2011

Source: Bellon et al. PNAS 2011

“Modern” seed systems

Last hundred years, but especially last fifty, “modern” seed systems appear In the hands of plant breeders and seed

companies Driven by profits, specialization and economies

of scale Commercial transactions and homogenized

products De-linking of the public and private

characteristics and benefits of seed

“Modern” seed systems (con’t)

Closed by design: limited and regulated entrance and discard of seed Focus on the private characteristics of seed Central to generate profits

Centralized: relative few actors (seed enterprises) make decisions in a few locations, environments and conditions

Global: the spatial reach of a few seed enterprises is global

Although generate high productivity, may create excessive homogeneity over space and time

CIMMYT maize trial sites, derived from international testing trials database, in relation to rural poverty areas

Trial Sites Outside Poor Areas (n = 149)Trial Sites Within Poor Areas (n = 9)

Source: Bellon, M. R., D. Hodson, D. Bergvinson, D. Beck, E. Martinez-Romero and Y. Montoya. 2005. Targeting agricultural research to benefit poor farmers: Relating poverty mapping to maize environments in Mexico. Food Policy 30: 476-492

Distribution of latest maize collections in Mexico

Data: Proyecto Global de Maices Nativos, CONABIOhttp://www.biodiversidad.gob.mx/genes/proyectoMaices.html

Conclusions

“Traditional” seed systems due to their openness, decentralization and local scope may produce new and useful variation in unpredictable ways (public benefit) central to adapt to change But associated with poverty and underdevelopment Of limited use and value at the global level

Conclusions

“Modern” seed systems deliver high productivity (private benefit) but may have limited capacity to adapt to change due to excessive centralization and homogeneity Rely on past accumulated genetic variation (mining approach)

Need both Need to create mechanisms that foster their

coexistence and to link them From a mining approach to a renewable

approach in the use of genetic variation

Conclusions

If “traditional” seed systems produced new and useful genetic variation in unpredictable ways then important to maintain

For global benefits to be realized need a global information system that monitors evolution and adaptation and makes new variation available not only genetic erosion

This can be hampered or fostered by international regimes that attempt to regulate plant genetic resources