Cultivating Diversity: Agrobiodiversity and food security

Biodiversity is a fundamental basis for agricultural production and food security, as well as a valuable ingredient of environmental conservation.

This report reveals the urgent need for action to incorporate biodiversity planning into agricultural development, and it highlights effective practices and policies. It evaluates a range of impacts from unsustainable agriculture, including:

• the loss of genetic diversity in crops and livestock,
• the decline in resistance to pests and diseases,
• the loss of agroecosystem diversity,
• the disruption of insect diversity from misuse of pesticides,
• the loss of soil biodiversity, and
• the nutritional implications of the loss of diversity in foods.

Drawing on the experience of developing countries, the report identifies best practices to incorporate farmer’s knowledge and protect agrobiodiversity on large-scale farms.