The best films on the topics of seeds, traditional crops, genetic engineering, genetically modified organisms and seeds.
30,000 plant species are edible. But only 30 highly productive varieties of cereals, fruits and vegetables make it into our supermarkets.
A few large biotech companies control the global seed market. A billion-dollar business. Bred or genetically modified varieties are patented and thus privatised. There are specially developed pesticides for each variety. At the same time, the patented seeds have to be bought anew every year.
The valuable seed diversity is lost due to the bred high-performance varieties. Each plant variety grows under specific conditions and has adapted perfectly to its environment. If these plants disappear, their adaptability, developed over millions of years, will also be lost, which could be of the greatest importance in the future. This is because climate change leads to more frequent severe weather events and crop failures. Only through a great diversity of cultivated plants will we be able to secure our food supply in the future.
The films in this section show the effects of bred and genetically modified varieties on plant diversity as well as our health, and take a look behind the scenes of the billion dollar seed business.