>I don’t take hallucinogenic drugs and I don’t suppose you do either.

So can you explain how it is that agriculture is now facing an historically unprecedented combination of major challenges and crises and yet most people – even in the agricultural community – seem remarkably complacent?

It’s as if a big truck were speeding straight towards us on a narrow, one-way road, but we’ve decided not to talk about it because we can’t quite bring ourselves to believe it’s real.

But it is.

Not my words.

Read more here.

The Global Crop Diversity Trust officially opened the Arctic Seed Vault today in Svalbard in Norway.

It’s important because it’s the ultimate safety net for the world’s most important natural resource – 4.5 million seed samples, equivalent to about 2 billion seeds.

They’ll be stored at least two other separate locations, but if everything goes pear-shaped and GM screws everything up, we’ll be able to fall back on heritage strains.

I’m really happy that it’s there, but the fact that it’s necessary worries me no end….