Bloomberg Businessweek had an interesting article in the past few days about the reduction in wild apple forests in Kazakhstan due to illegal development of vacation homes as well as drought and increased disease pressure linked in part to changing climate. Kazakhstan is home to what some consider the birthplace of many modern crops like apricots, walnuts and apples. The genetic diversity of the wild apple trees may hold the key to developing future apple varieties that may be more disease resistant or drought tolerant. “Varieties with these traits could potentially add billions in efficiency to the market,” says Gennaro Fazio, a U.S. Department of Agriculture plant geneticist. “If you lose it, it’s gone. It’s not going to be a source to draw upon—and we’re not only talking about the U.S. market, we’re talking worldwide.” You can read the article here.
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