The Crop Trust has announced the launch of Securing Our Seeds (SOS): Digital Innovation for Global Crop Diversity Conservation, a major new initiative aimed at reshaping how crop diversity — an essential pillar of global food security — is monitored, protected, and put to use. The project is supported by a USD 2 million grant from Google.org’s AI Collaborative: Food Security.
The Crop Trust is an international organization dedicated exclusively to building and strengthening a global network of genebanks that conserve and provide access to the genetic diversity of agricultural crops. More than 850 facilities worldwide safeguard millions of seed and other plant samples. These collections are critical for breeding crops that can better withstand heat, drought, pests, and diseases, while also supporting improved nutrition and livelihood opportunities.
However, genebanks face significant hurdles. Gaps in data quality, management, and accessibility mean that much of this diversity remains underused — or, in some cases, at risk. The SOS project will tackle these challenges through two initiatives designed to modernize the global genebank system, according to a press release.
“Crop diversity is disappearing – silently – just when the world needs it most,” said Dr Stefan Schmitz, Executive Director of the Crop Trust. “With Google.org’s support, we are taking critical steps to protect the crop diversity, both in genebanks and in the field, that underpins our future food supply.”
Digitizing Genebanks
The SOS project will support ten national genebanks in the Global South to become smart data hubs by:
- Expanding the adoption of the open-source GRIN-Global Community Edition (GGCE) genebank information management software
- Integrating these genebank collections with Genesys, the world’s largest portal to share information on the crop diversity conserved in genebanks
- Strengthening digital skills in the global genebank system with training in information management.
Improved data management and availability will help researchers, plant breeders and even farmers locate the crop diversity they need. And it will help genebanks work together more effectively and efficiently.
“Without reliable data, promising diversity will remain hidden,” Schmitz said. “Digitizing collections unlocks the full potential of genebanks to enable climate adaptation and solutions to other global challenges. Good data is crucial for global food security.”
Detecting Risks to Diversity
The SOS project will also examine how artificial intelligence and other tools could help identify and track threats to crop diversity across regions and over time. Currently, there is no global system to monitor where crop diversity is declining on farms or in wild ecosystems — or to understand the drivers behind this loss of agricultural biodiversity.
To address this gap, the Crop Trust will explore the feasibility of an early warning system that combines AI with diverse datasets to detect, assess, and visualise risks to crop diversity. The aim is to present these insights through an interactive map, enabling genebanks to act sooner — before valuable, irreplaceable diversity is lost.
“Proactive intervention using AI could take crop conservation to a whole new level,” said Dr. Sarada Krishnan, Director of Programs at the Crop Trust. “This partnership opens a new chapter in adapting agriculture to climate change.”
Today’s Tech for Tomorrow’s Seeds
With support from Google.org, the Crop Trust will strengthen a digitally connected global genebank system built for long-term resilience. By applying modern technologies, the project will help ensure crop diversity is properly documented, securely conserved, and more effectively used to support breeding and innovation.
Google.org’s contribution reflects a broader commitment to applying AI in service of food security—by reinforcing the institutions that protect one of the world’s most important agricultural assets: crop diversity.
“Artificial intelligence can give humanity a much-needed boost in the fight against food insecurity,” said Alex Diaz, Google.org’s Head of AI for Social Good. “The AI Collaborative for Food Security will enhance the resilience of global food systems and improve food security for the world’s most vulnerable populations by leveraging innovative AI technologies, collaborative research and data-sharing, and coordinated action to improve the pace and efficacy of hunger prediction and intervention. This critical work, led by Crop Trust, will better connect the global genebank system, enabling the conservation and use of the seeds we need to future-proof our food systems. Google.org is proud to support this global effort.”
The Crop Trust is proud to join the AI Collaborative and partner with a community of leading organizations to leverage new technologies in the effort to secure the future of food for everyone, forever.
