Abstract
Latin America is the center of domestication and diversity of maize, the second most cultivated crop worldwide. In this region, maize landraces are fundamental for food security, livelihoods, and culture. Nevertheless, genetic erosion (i.e., the loss of genetic diversity and variation in a crop) threatens the continued cultivation and in situ conservation of landrace diversity that is crucial to climate change adaptation and diverse uses of maize. We provide an overview of maize diversity in Latin America before discussing factors associated with persistence of large in situ maize diversity, causes for maize landrace abandonment by farmers, and strategies to enhance the cultivation of landraces. Among other factors, maize diversity is linked with: (1) small-holder farming, (2) the production of traditional food products, (3) traditional cropping systems, (4) cultivation in marginal areas, and (5) retention of control over the production system by the farmers. On the other hand, genetic erosion is associated with substitution of landraces with hybrid varieties or cash crops, and partial (off-farm labor) or complete migration to urban areas. Continued cultivation, and therefore on-farm conservation of genetic diversity held in maize landraces, can be encouraged by creating or strengthening market opportunities that make the cultivation of landraces and open pollinated varieties (OPVs) more profitable for farmers, supporting breeding programs that prioritize improvement of landraces and their special traits, and increasing the access to quality germplasm of landraces and landrace-derived OPVs.
Highlights
Maize (Zea mays L. subsp. mays) is the second most cultivated crop in the world, and together with rice and wheat, is one of the three major cereal crops
The biofortified hybrid ‘SGBIOH20 was selected for the coffee-producing zone of Colombia (Eje Cafetero) from germplasm introduced from CIMMYT, Mexico
Latin America is the center of domestication and diversity of maize, the second most cultivated crop species at global scale
Summary
Maize (Zea mays L. subsp. mays) is the second most cultivated crop in the world, and together with rice and wheat, is one of the three major cereal crops. Maize landraces, defined as “dynamic populations that have historical origin, distinct identity, lack formal crop improvement, and are often genetically diverse, locally adapted and associated with traditional farming systems” [3], are still widely cultivated in Latin. Maize landraces are of great heritage value in Latin America, where they are linked to local and traditional products, and are important for food sovereignty and cultural identities [14,15,16,17]. Because of their fundamental importance for food security, plant breeding, and cultural identity, strategies are needed to support their sustainable and profitable on-farm cultivation and conservation. An overview of conservation of teosintes (maize wild relatives) is provided
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