
INCREASE decentralised conservation approach
The most common approach to conserving the genetic diversity of crop plants, such as the common bean, is to store them centrally, in so-called gene banks. In these institutions, thousands of traditional or local varieties are stored as seeds in cold chambers, regularly reproduced and thus saved for future generations.
The key to preserving traditional local varieties lies in their cultivation and utilisation. Therefore, INCREASE contributes a complementary form of conservation through the innovative concept of decentralised conservation: Citizens, farmers and gardeners from across the whole Europe, like you, cultivate bean local varieties and exchange them with each other. This newly established and lively conservation community brings countless, almost forgotten varieties of beans back into fields and gardens and onto terraces and balconies letting them jump into our kitchens!