Pro Specie Rara: Saving the Alps' Forgotten Crops

Pro Specie Rara practices 'living conservation': rather than freezing seeds in a vault, it returns rare and traditional plant varieties and native livestock breeds to farmers, gardeners and smallholders across Switzerland, including struggling alpine regions, so the genetics stay active and adapted to changing mountain conditions. Its catalogue spans more than 3,000 plant genetic resources, from garden and field crops to heirloom fruit, alongside a network of breeders sustaining nearly two dozen native Swiss livestock breeds historically kept on alpine pasture. The foundation partners with retailers and restaurants to create market demand for these varieties, giving mountain farmers a economic reason to keep growing them instead of switching to industrial monocultures.