Crop farmers must continually battle the insects and diseases that attack their plants. When used correctly and with care, chemical insecticides and fungicides are helpful in improving the quality and dependability of food supplies, but some have had detrimental effects on the environment, and several pest species have developed resistance to once-effective …show more content…
Farmers generally choose to grow the best available strains. The superiority of a small number of improved varieties has caused wholesale abandonment of thousands of local strains of crops. This reduction of the gene pool may make it more difficult to meet future needs of changing climate, soil, and challenges from unforeseen pests. In an effort to preserve the size of the gene pool, international centers and experimental stations scattered throughout the world are beginning to develop collections of genetic samples of these local crop strains. Much irreplaceable material has been lost, but an increasing commitment by funding agencies and scientists offers hope that this genetic waste will