The 2020 Svalbard Seed Summit highlighted the growing need for genetic diversity for more resilient food systems. The Seed Summit was organised by the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food, NordGen and Crop Trust on the occasion of the major seed deposit at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault the same day.
After the Seed Summit, 35 institutions deposited an additional 65,119 accessions in 188 boxes into the Seed Vault. This brings the total to 1,050,000 accessions in the Seed Vault, which is the largest safety backup of the world’s crop diversity.
Grethe Evjen, Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food, chaired the two first sessions, while Stefan Schmitz, Crop Trust, chaired the last session. After the Seed Summit, all participants travelled to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault for the largest deposit since the official opening of the Seed Vault in 2008.
Summary of a summit held on Tuesday, 25 February 2020 at the Longyearbyen Cultural Centre