National Academy of Sciences of Belarus

26.03.2020

Press Conference on Plant Genetic Bank Is a Basis for Food and Biological Safety

A press conference on the subject “Plant Genetic Bank Is a Basis for Food and Biological Safety” was held on the 26th of March 2020 under the under the auspices of Press Centre of the Press House.

As it was mentioned at the press conference, Belarus is ranked the 4th for the quantity of collectable plant samples among the CIS countries. Thanks to Plant Genetic Pool State Program, a national collection of genetic resources of Belarusian plants was created. Today, it comprises more than 80 thousand samples of 1 680 cultivated and wild plants and holds the 4th position with regard to the amount of collectable plant samples among the CIS countries. Above 1 020 varieties and hybrids of agricultural cultures included into the national register have been developed on the basis of the national collection since 2000. Some Belarusian plant varieties are registered in other countries (Russia, Serbia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, etc.). 75 thousand hectares of forest was restored with the use of the forest culture genetic pool, and 52 rare plant species included into the Red Book of Belarus were saved. The Research and Practical Centre of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus for Arable Farming established a national bank of useful plant seeds comprising more than 41 thousand collective samples of 74 cultures, including grain, feed, leguminous, cereal, oil, technical, vegetable, as well as medical and aromatic cultures.