Agro-biodiversity

Om handvatten te geven voor het inzetten van natuurlijke vijanden tegen de belangrijkste plagen in de Zundertse boomteelt is via literatuurstudie, enquêtes en interviews de volgende trits beschreven: plaag → natuurlijke vijand → ecologische vereisten van de natuurlijke vijand →  maatregelenset ter stimulering van de natuurlijke vijand. Het blijkt dat voorlopers in de boomteelt al volop experimenteren met onderdelen van deze maatregelenset en dat winst te behalen is in de uitwisseling van goede praktijken en het inzetten van het totaalpakket aan maatregelen.

India’s Garhwal Himalaya is an agrobiodiversity hotspot. The
traditional system of cultivating ‘Barahnaja’ (literally, '12
seeds') together in cropped land is a centuries-old practice: a
cropping pattern involving 12 or more food crops grown in
‘synergetic’ combinations (Singh and Tulachan, 2002). This is
practiced under a ‘Sar system’ of crop rotation that
characterises the cropping pattern together with a vertical
distribution of crops – in valley regions, mid-altitudes and
highlands – and supports the maintenance of agrobiodiversity.
Three quarters of the people in the region depend on this
system for their livelihoods. The traditional agricultural
systems are the reservoirs of many crops and cultivars, most of
which are still little known to mainstream societies and are
better adapted than modern agricultural systems to
environmental and social conditions (Altieri, 1995;
Ramakrishnan and Saxena, 1996). Recently changes in the
cropping pattern have taken place as ‘Barahnaja’ has
decreased, particularly in the mid-slopes and low-lying areas.

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Since 2000s, Africa and India severally rejected the notion that UPOV's 1991 standard of Plant Breeders Rights (PBRs) is the only route to fulfill their obligations under Article 27 of the TRIPs Agreement. Objecting to the exclusive focus of the UPOV regime on formal plant breeders, African countries, insisted on a holistic approach to plant breeders' rights to include protection for rights of communities, farmers and their indigenous knowledge, innovation and practices. Consequently, under the African Union's (AU) auspices, Africa proposed the Model Law for the Protection of the Rights of Local Communities and Breeders, and for Regulations of Access to Biological Resources. Self-evidently, the law not only recognizes the centrality of the smallholder indigenous and local community farmers on the continent's food production, it also underscores the interconnectedness of biodiversity conservation, farmers' rights, traditional knowledge, access and benefit sharing over genetic resources within then emergent international regimes. Nearly two decades after, Africa's resolve has proven to be fickle. The continent has reversed itself and fully embraced the UPOV regime. At about the same time as the Model Law, India enacted the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 –an instrument consistent with the spirit of Africa's Model Law. Both regimes take into account the role of local farmers as the backbone of agricultural innovation, food production and food security in the developing world, including Africa and India, thereby further enhancing the idea of farmers' rights in food and agriculture law and policy. This Article juxtaposes the circumstances around Africa's failure of resolve and India's wobbly experience over farmers' rights. It calls attention to farmers' rights as a site for a missed and yet potentially redeemable opportunity for both Africa and India to advance South-South solidarity for food security.

*​Paper forthcoming in Indian Journal of Law and Technology  2018​

El presente documento da a conocer los resultados de la «Elaboración de las Bases Técnicas para el Reconocimiento Oficial de las Áreas de Manejo Especial para la Conservación de la Agrobiodiversidad AMECAs». Resultados que contienen.
* Un marco conceptual de las AMECAs como estrategia de conservación de los objetos de la agrobiodiversidad nativa y de reconocimiento de los conservacionistas.
* Las medidas de éxito de las AMECAs como una expresión que integra la dimensión ambiental, la dimensión humana, la dimensión económica y político institucional.
* Los fundamentos ambientales, sociales culturales, económicos y político institucionales que sustentan la creación de las AMECAs.
* Una estrategia de gestión apropiada teniendo presente que se trata de un régimen privado, se refiere a unidades bioculturales, donde las áreas se mueven periódicamente en función a condiciones climáticas y culturales.
* El procedimiento para el reconocimiento oficial  (Normatividad y Mecanismos) concordado con el Organismo Regulador.
* Finalmente se presenta el Caso de la Comunidad de Laria en Huancavelica, como un potencial caso piloto de AMECA

Despite the fact that policy makers and governments are promoting the development of diverse agro-bio food systems to push and promote sustainability, they are challenging to implement because of a series of obstacles that hinder a successful transition from a conventional to an agro-ecological model of agriculture. Produce is extremely heterogeneous and agricultural technology is often not standard, rather alternative, and knowledge is contextual, tacit and place-specific. However, information about the characteristics of these systems is still sparse and difficult to analyse because of the complexity and multidimensionality. As a result, the aim of this paper is to review the existing literature in order to identify a coding system that allows for the creation of a meta-database of case studies on agroecological transitions. This coding system will be piloted in six case studies dealing with agrobiodiversity along cereal food systems producing grains, bread and pasta in France, Italy and the UK. In this analysis, we found that both the transition towards sustainable agriculture and the reduction of transaction costs require social innovation, which benefits from strong social capital. In the conclusions, we discuss the efficacy of the proposed coding scheme and its ability to capture in-depth information contained in similar case studies.

Native chilies (Capsicum spp.) are currently underutilized in Bolivia, one of this crop’s centers of diversity. Fewer local farmers cultivate native chilies annually due to low market demand. Increasing its private use value can lead to the in-situ conservation of this crop. The objective of the paper is to evaluate the market acceptability of three native chili products: (a) chili marmalade; (b) chili cooking paste; and (c) pickled chilies. Multi-product Becker-DeGroot-Marschak experimental auctions and hedonic tests were conducted with
337 participants in La Paz and Santa Cruz. Data were analyzed using seemingly unrelated regressions. Results suggest that consumers are willing to pay price premiums of about 25–50 percent. Biodiversity conservation and improvements in farmers’ quality of life statements would not have influence on first purchase decisions but rather on repurchase decisions and therefore on consumers’ product loyalty. This in turn could lead to sustainable agro-biodiversity conservation, centered on consumers’ purchase of these products over time.

Sub-Saharan Africa is richly endowed with natural agro biodiversity that is being threatened by the impacts of climate change, deforestation, flooding, water and air pollution, genetic erosion, incessant hunting and collection of wild plants and animal species as well as natural disasters. The challenge is thus for the people and government to work together in safeguarding the environment and preserving biodiversity by adopting an integrated conservation strategies which include; application of indigenous knowledge in biodiversity conservation, adoption of organic and sustainable farming practices, setting up of botanic and zoological gardens, gene banks and a deliberate government policy aimed at environmental protection and agro biodiversity conservation to avoid extinction of endangered plant, and animal species.

The Lao uplands have long been recognized for their rich agro-biodiversity. Home to globally important species of animals, plants, and micro-organisms, this agro-biodiversity is the legacy of the upland farmers’ agricultural knowledge and practices passed down over generations. Towards the end of the 20th century and the start of this one, the agrarian transition and the integration of Laos into the regional and global economy brought economic opportunity to upland communities. It also brought challenges and contradictions for traditionally subsistence farmers and threats to the biodiversity of the region.

In Bob Brac de la Perriere 2020. "Privatización de la materia viva: Del rechazo a las propuestas"
Fundación Charles Leopold Mayer para el Progreso del Hombre (FPH)
Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos Bartolomé de Las Casas (CBC)
Editors: Bob Brac de la Perriere, pp.72-75

Conference paper: "XI Congreso Internacional sobre Cultivos Andinos" - PROINPA
Cochabamba, Bolivia, 2002-

SISTEMAS LEGALES DE GESTIÓN DE LOS RECURSOS FITOGENÉTICOS ÚTILES A LA ALIMENTACIÓN Y A LA AGRICULTURA - RFAA
Los procesos de conservación, acceso, utilización y distribución de los beneficios derivados de la utilización de los recursos fitogenéticos útiles a la alimentación y a la agricultura – RFAA, están legislados por un gran repertorio de normas que emanan del Derecho Ambiental, del Derecho Agrario y del Derecho internacional sobre la Propiedad Intelectual.
Este conjunto de normas ha determinado los principales elementos de la “Gestión Legal Internacional de los RFAA”, entre los cuales resaltan dos sistemas de acceso y de distribución de los beneficios derivados de la utilización de estos recursos. El primero establecido por el CDB en 1992 y el segundo, denominado “Sistema Multilateral de Acceso y de distribución de beneficios”, que fue adoptado por la FAO en el 2001. Estos sistemas dentro de una lógica de desarrollo durable, están orientados a:
 La implementación de políticas destinadas a la conservación In situ y Ex situ de los RFAA a nivel mundial.
 La definición de principios y mecanismos que faciliten el acceso a los RFAA para el uso y la comercialización, el acceso para la investigación y el acceso para garantizar la Seguridad Alimentaria mundial.
Complementariamente, los Convenios de la Unión internacional para la Protección de las Obtenciones Vegetales – UPOV y el Acuerdo sobre los Derechos de Propiedad Intelectual vinculados al Comercio – ADPIC, rigen la gestión comercial internacional de los RFAA.
El análisis de las interrelaciones entre los tratados mencionados permite apreciar la existencia de serios límites e incompatibilidades entre estas normas. En consecuencia, se hace aún más difícil la implementación de los "derechos de los agricultores” y la protección de los conocimientos colectivos de los pueblos indígenas vinculados a los recursos biológicos.
Msc. Marco CHEVARRIA LAZO
IRD.

Unscathed agrobiodiversity remaining in-situ today is found on the small-scale farms and homestead gardens of poorer and developing countries . The indigenous traditional farming of Muthuvan tribe as the case of Finger millet or Ragi (Eleusine coracana), a minor millet cultivated in the Western Ghats in Kerala in the Indian South is one such classic example for in-situ agrobiodiversity management, based on organic farming systems. On such fields, the use of labour intensive, traditional production techniques have persisted throughout the period of controlled state farming and the market based large-scale farming. The homestead gardens close to fringes of 'South Western Ghats-the hotspot of biodiversity' also play a crucial role in tribalistic context, by contributing to the rural livelihoods in time periods and locations when markets or state institutions do not. This paper attempts to analyse the opportunity costs of minor millet cultivation incurred by indigenous tribe in scheming compensations for biodiversity conservation. It further discusses possibilities to deliver a tangible and hopeful alternative towards sustainable livelihood in the backdrop of climate change. The methodology involves use of 'Switching Regression model' in the estimation and comprehension of opportunity costs, and further looks at its relevance in traditional farming of underutilised minor millets in the tribal homesteads and is equated in terms of indirect payment for biodiversity conservation. The analysis of results concludes the importance of creating incentives for the conservation of agrobiodiversity, especially the on-farm diversity of underutilised crops and supporting poverty alleviation, and preventing welfare losses among vulnerable communities.

In this presentation, I explore the interactions between the right to food, the right to enjoy the scientific progress and the right to cultural manifestations, with concrete examples such as the agro-biodiversity, plant genetic resources, traditional knowledge, public funded research knowledge, cuisine recipes and food safety considerations. Whose science for what farmers? Who owns agricultural and nutritional innovations? do patents prevent or deter innovation for humankind? What does it mean the public approach to food?

The maintenance and utilization of crop genetic diversity is important to ensure food security. The rela-tive importance of yam and cowpea varieties and the influence of the socio-cultural and local economy context on the diversity maintained were analysed in Benin. Whereas the diversity is large, some vari-eties were rare, other ones on the way of being abandoned or already lost. Socio-cultural as well as economic and agronomic characteristics explained why some of them were still maintained. For exam-ple, the early-maturing yam variety Laboko was planted by most farmers to have tubers available in time for religious purposes, and some specific cowpea varieties played a role in the funeral of the parents in law. Farmers ’ preferences were translated into criteria they use to appreciate varieties. The diversity of the varieties sold on the market and their availability over time reflect farmers ’ strategies and conserva-tion practices. The large price differences between varieties c...

En este trabajo expongo y analizo el conflicto social desatado en torno al actual sistema de patentes relacionado con los productos y las prácticas de la nueva ingeniería genética. Más en concreto, esta discusión económica, política y sociocultural radica en hasta qué punto debería entenderse que el actual sistema de patentes vinculado a la nueva biotecnología es esencialmente eficaz, justo y adecuado. Se debate, por añadidura, sobre si este régimen de regulación contribuye de una manera positiva al deseable progreso de la ciencia, la tecnología y el conjunto de la sociedad contemporánea. Por ende, este trabajo busca evidenciar algunas de las tensiones colectivas más importantes que, cuando menos de momento, parecen dificultar en gran medida la obtención de un acuerdo dialogado sobre en qué grado resulta correcto y equitativo el actual sistema de patentes y los respectivos derechos de propiedad intelectual asociados a la lógica investigadora, transformadora y empresarial de la nueva ingeniería genética.

Esta indagación, pues, procura constatar la enorme disparidad de pareceres existente en torno a si el actual sistema de patentes vinculado a los nuevos organismos transgénicos se apoya e instituye sobre unos usos ciertamente apropiados, fundados y legítimos o sobre unos abusos en gran medida excesivos, injustos e ilegítimos. A modo de resumen, de hecho, cabe decir que se traducen y enfrentan aquí dos posturas cognitivas y socioculturales fundamentales. En síntesis, la posición dominante muestra y defiende sobre todo una realidad legal y contractual. Mientras, la posición marginal y alternativa propone y contrapone en gran medida una realidad justa y legítima. La perspectiva más habitual, dicho con otras palabras, lamenta la escasez y la debilidad de este nuevo proceso formal de bioregulación. El enfoque emergente, por el contrario, denuncia los grandes excesos cometidos actualmente por el biogobierno y la práctica biogubernamental.

Unscathed agrobiodiversity remaining in-situ today is found on the small-scale farms and homestead gardens of poorer and developing countries (Brookfield, 2001). The indigenous traditional farming of Muthuvan tribe as the case of Finger millet or Ragi (Eleusine coracana), a minor millet cultivated in the Western Ghats in Kerala in the Indian South is one such classic example for in-situ agrobiodiversity management, based on organic farming systems. On such fields, the use of labour intensive, traditional production techniques have persisted throughout the period of controlled state farming and the market based large-scale farming. The homestead gardens close to fringes of ‘South Western Ghats-the hotspot of biodiversity’ also play a crucial role in tribalistic context, by contributing to the rural livelihoods in time periods and locations when markets or state institutions do not. This paper attempts to analyse the opportunity costs of minor millet cultivation incurred by indigenous tribe in scheming compensations for biodiversity conservation. It further discusses possibilities to deliver a tangible and hopeful alternative towards sustainable livelihood in the backdrop of climate change. The methodology involves use of ‘Switching Regression model’ in the estimation and comprehension of opportunity costs, and further looks at its relevance in traditional farming of underutilised minor millets in the tribal homesteads and is equated in terms of indirect payment for biodiversity conservation. The analysis of results concludes the importance of creating incentives for the conservation of agrobiodiversity, especially the on-farm diversity of underutilised crops and supporting poverty alleviation, and preventing welfare losses among vulnerable communities.