June 30, 2026
Ukraine’s accession strengthens global efforts to conserve and share the plant genetic resources that sustain food security worldwide
©FAO / Anastasiia Borodaienko
Ukraine has deposited its instrument of accession to the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture with the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and will become the 156th Contracting Party (member) of the International Treaty.
“We are delighted to welcome Ukraine to the International Treaty community and look forward to working together to conserve and exchange the vital plant genetic resources that the entire world depends on for food and farming,” said International Treaty Secretary Kent Nnadozie. “Ukraine holds plant genetic materials of global importance to crop improvement and food security for many of the world’s major food crops, such as wheat, barley, oats, legumes and forage crops, among others.”
The International Treaty was established in recognition that every country is dependent, to a large extent, on crops from other regions and countries. The exchange and use of that plant diversity is critical to feeding the world and ensuring good nutrition, particularly at a time of cascading challenges, such as climate variability and geopolitical conflicts.
“Joining the International Treaty will give Ukraine access to the global system of plant genetic resources – this is critically important for breeding and restoring the agricultural sector. It will allow the creation of new varieties resistant to climate change and diseases. In the context of war and the loss of some genetic resources, this decision is an important step toward strengthening food security and the long-term resilience of the agricultural sector,” said Taras Vysotsky, Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine.
In recognition of joining the International Treaty, Ukraine plans to deposit over 1 000 seed samples of grain and forage crops, including maize, legumes, buckwheat and rye at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in October this year.
Accession to the International Treaty affirms Ukraine’s commitment to conserving, sustainably using and equitably sharing the benefits arising from the use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA), which form the building blocks of the world’s food from plants. Becoming a Contracting Party will provide Ukraine with access to the Treaty’s Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing (MLS), a global genepool of more than 2 million of the world’s most important crops that all Parties have agreed to exchange and share equitably. Access to the Multilateral System provides farmers, researchers and plant breeders with the plant genetic resources for food and agriculture they need to improve crop resilience, while the Treaty’s Global Information System (GLIS) provides access to data on these plant genetic resources.
“The Treaty’s Multilateral System has become a cornerstone of global cooperation to ensure that crop diversity remains accessible to all for plant breeding,” Secretary Nnadozie reiterated, adding that over 7 million samples of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture have been exchanged through the MLS.
In 2022, Ukraine’s national genebank was in imminent danger following the escalation of the war, resulting in damage to the genebank’s infrastructure. Ranked among the top ten global genebanks in terms of volume and diversity, the genebank holds more than 154 300 samples across 2 002 plant species, including 56 900 samples of Ukrainian origin such as collections of wheat, barley, chickpeas and sunflowers of global significance. The entire collection was in danger of being lost. The international community came together, along with FAO, the European Commission, the European Cooperative Programme for Plant Genetic Resources (ECPGR), the Global Crop Diversity Trust and NordGen, to support efforts to safeguard Ukraine’s seed diversity.
In November 2025, a Duplicate Center was officially opened to ensure the long-term protection of Ukraine’s plant genetic resources.
The accession of Ukraine is part of the country’s national Strategy for the Development of Plant Genetic Resources System of Ukraine for 2024–2028. The International Treaty provides the legal framework for the exchange and sustainable use of vital plant genetic resources, bringing countries together to protect and share the world’s crop diversity for current and future generations.
The text is also available in Russian
About the ITPGRFA
The International Treaty, established by FAO in 2001, provides a legally binding framework for the exchange, conservation, sustainable use, and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of plant genetic resources. It aims to enhance global food security while supporting farmers and researchers in their critical role as custodians of agrobiodiversity, and calls for the protection and promotion of Farmers’ Rights, including local and indigenous communities who have managed this crop diversity over millennia. The Treaty currently has 155 Contracting Parties, including the European Union, and will grow to 156 when Ukraine’s membership takes effect later this summer.
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