India’s Vanishing Indigenous Vegetables Highlight Global Biodiversity Loss

India’s indigenous vegetables, such as the clove bean and Yerengere white long eggplant, are disappearing from markets as hybrid varieties dominate supply chains. Natural farmer Prabhakar Rao of Hariyalee Seeds in Bengaluru has preserved hundreds of heirloom seed varieties to counter this trend. A July study published in PNAS catalogued 1,482 vegetable species worldwide, noting that the true number of local and wild varieties is much higher. Researchers warn that about 24 % of the wild relatives of 79 major vegetable species are now at risk of extinction. The study also points out that many of these species are not held in national or international gene banks, limiting future use. The authors call for urgent conservation and utilization of this diversity to prevent further loss.