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European Cooperation Programmes International

The conservation and use of genetic resources for food and agriculture is of international importance because no country is independent of the genetic resources available in other countries.

European Cooperation Programmes

At European level, there is intensive cooperation in the field of conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources.

Specific cooperation programmes have been agreed for some sectors:

•    European Co-operation Programme on Plant Genetic Resources (ECPGR)
      The European Co-operation Programme on Plant Genetic Resources (ECPGR) is a Community
       programme among most European countries aimed at ensuring the long-term conservation in gene
       banks (ex situ) and facilitating the use of plant genetic resources in Europe.
       More about ECPGR here.
•    European Regional Focal Point for Animal Genetic Resources (ERFP)
      The European Regional Focal Point for Animal Genetic Resources (ERFP) is a European platform
      dedicated to the conservation and sustainable use of animal genetic resources. It has a similar
      structure to ECPGR, but not only supports the conservation of farm animals ex situ, but also "in
      situ", i.e. in farm animals through active breeding of animal populations for food and agricultural
      production. ERFP is thus actively contributing to the implementation of the FAO Global Plan of Action
      for Animal Genetic Resources.
•    European Programme for Forest Genetic Resources (EUFORGEN)
    EUFORGEN, the European Regional Programme for Forest Genetic Resources, was founded in 1990
    on the initiative of the first European Conference of Forest Ministers. Similar to the networks
    mentioned above, it promotes the conservation and sustainable use of forest genetic resources in
    Europe as an integral part of sustainable forest management. It serves as a platform for pan-
    European cooperation in this field.
    EUFORGEN supports both in situ and ex situ protection efforts, but with a strong focus on
    conservation in situ.