Seed Hunter, a 2008* documentary about the search for germplasm, is worth checking out. It takes you on a hunt for wild chick peas in remote Tajikistan and has a little bit on wheat breeding. There is some good footage of some very marginal farms, a hint of what could come.
I found the narration very extreme, so be warned that 1) some things are not as bad as it make them seem and 2) although breeding is going to be absolutely crucial to feeding people its not a stand alone magic bullet.
The documentary makes it appear that collection trip only yielded a chick peas at a single site, whether or not thats the actual case it made me think about ownership issues surrounding germplasm. A small increase in yield of any major crop can quickly add up to millions of dollars of value. If it is the case that ultra valuable chick pea land races, collected at single village, will change chick pea production globally shouldn’t the village or farmers who grew and protected them for generations get something? What about wild relatives? If countries can make money from germplasm there would be incentive to protect and/or collect them. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!
You can order the DVD from the official site, or you maybe be able to rent it or get it at a library. Its also broken into parts on youtube.
*new to me
