The world’s food security is under threat. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations reports that 75 per cent of the world’s food comes from just 12 plant and five animal sources. Three crops - wheat, rice and corn - account for 51 per cent of the calories included in the diet. With such massive dependence on these crops, there is always a risk to food security due to climate vagaries and emerging pests.
Information collated by the CGIAR Foresight Initiative shows that up to 22 pc of wild crop species may go extinct by 2055 and that over 9 pc of the mammal domesticated breeds had already become extinct by 2016. The magnitude of such threats is undermining the future sustainability of agricultural production and the food security and livelihoods of countless producers and consumers.
Agro biodiversity, or agricultural biodiversity, refers to the variety of plants, animals, and microorganisms used in food and agriculture. As per FAO estimates, there are more than 30,000 edible plants in the world out of which 6,000 plants are consumed by human beings and around 700 are cultivated on a large scale. India, with its rich cultural heritage and diverse ecosystems, is home to a vast array of agro biodiversity. The country has a documented history of over 9,000 plant species, including medicinal and wildflowers, consumed over 4,000 years of Indian civilization.
Landraces, also termed as traditional varieties, of crops are the reservoir of many novel genes for valuable traits which hold importance for identification and further use of alleles/genes to improve varieties tolerant to stresses. This ability of adaptation will play an important role in the future of food. For example, Flood Resistance 13A (FR13A) gene was identified decades ago from an indica rice landrace collected from coastal Odisha that has contributed to the development of several submergence tolerant varieties by research institutions.
Food Culture Connection
The tribal regions of Odisha are a hotspot for agro biodiversity, with a wide range of rice landraces, millets, tubers, pulses, oilseeds, and wild edible flowers. The Koraput region, identified as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Site (GIAHS) by the FAO of the United Nations, is home to a vast array of agro biodiversity. It is also identified as one of the origin centres of the Aus genotype of rice species. Gandhamardan Hills in Western Odisha have also been recognised as one of the greatest treasures of medicinal and aromatic plant diversity in the world.
Be it Nuakhai, or Raja, and for that matter, any other festival round the year, food plays a central role in all of them, reflecting the rich culinary traditions of Odisha. When food culture of a region is promoted, then automatically crops associated with those festivals find space in the culinary landscape. When more people start valorising these diets, then more diverse crops get added in the agricultural fields.
Community-led Conservation
Raimati Ghiuria, a tribal farmer from Koraput, is an excellent example who has been conserving over 70 varieties of paddy, 30 varieties of millets, and other crops for over a decade. Her efforts have been recognised nationally and globally, and she has become a leader in promoting agro biodiversity and sustainable agriculture.
With the Shree Anna Abhiyan initiative of Government of Odisha and declaration of International Year of Millets 2023 by the United Nations, millets and efforts of custodian farmers like Raimati have attained spotlight. The state government is committed to recognise and support traditional knowledge and practices and ensure conservation of traditional crop varieties and genetic diversity.
New Initiatives
The government of Odisha has taken several initiatives to promote agro biodiversity, including the release of traditional varieties of rice and millets, and the establishment of a seed system for landraces. The state has also registered over 900 farmer varieties in the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Right Authority (PPVFRA). In a unique initiative, mapping of landraces has been carried out in more than 500 remote villages of Odisha through Shree Anna Abhiyan and Special Programme for Promotion of Integrated Farming (SPPIF) in tribal areas.
Crop diversity blocks have also been taken up in 30 districts with communities to increase the on-farm diversity. Further, the geographical indication (GI) tagging of specific varieties displaying unique properties, like Kala Jeera of paddy, Kantei-Mundi of brinjal & Kandhamal Haladi of turmeric have been initiated.
Revival of Neglected Crops
The Government of Odisha recently launched a programme to revive neglected crops and forgotten foods, which are an integral part of the state’s agro biodiversity. The programme aims to promote the conservation and sustainable use of these crops, and to support the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.
Protecting the future of food lies in investing in agro biodiversity, community custodians and food culture. By promoting and conserving landraces, traditional crops, and sustainable agricultural practices, we can ensure a food-secure future for generations to come.
(Principal Secretary, Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment Department, Odisha. Views expressed are personal)