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Since the German scientist Hans Stubbe collected 355 seedlings for cereals and legumes in 1941, which later sent them to the Genetics Institute in Germany, the bank of the agrobiodiversity genes in Albania grew year after year reaching today at 4105 categories, according to a special study by the German-Albanian co-operation.
The bank of genes holds about 3,219 categories as seeds under long-term preservation, while about 886 tree species are stored and kept in open terrain.The regeneration of genes is a mission of the national authority, which has also collected the genetic inheritance also in the Albanian language.
Currently 3,200 long-term seed preserves, about 10% have been regenerated, but about 50% of them should be regenerated.
The farming and the management of plant genetic resources is concentrated only in some farms that aim to test varieties for their production capacities and the improvement of the cultivation techniques.
The reported data show that gene farm management activities in the farms were mainly for local vegetables for family consumption and market sales, in the communities of the Korça region and the Alps area of Albania, mainly onions, cabbage, melon, pepper, tomatoes, squash, lettuce, bark, garlic and beans.
About 170 farmers are committed to planting typical Albanian genetic cultures.
After analyzing the findings of the study covering the period 2011-2014 in the Korça region, the farm conservation and sustainable use of traditional cultivars suggests five ways:
a) The promotion of the products;
b) The consolidation of specialized markets that efficiently use their organoleptic qualities;
c) Creating awareness of the potentials of traditional cultivars;
d) The restoration of the traditional cultivars through crop improvement processes;
e) subsidies for farm preservation and management of vegetable breeds, because their conservation and management should be considered as a service to be rewarded by society.
The farm maintenance network failed to establish lasting institutional arrangements. Consequently the conservation on the farm is voluntary organised by farmers.
Although the farmers in many parts of the country (especially in remote areas) cultivate local culture, they know very little about the values of these cultivars.
Also, surveys show that there are no activities related to the assessment of local varieties for their use and management or their economic benefit.
In general, cultivating and breeding varieties of local cultures is part of a tradition in some remote mountainous areas which are characterized by the lack of agricultural mechanization. The conservation and multiplication of local agricultural crops is carried out spontaneously by farmers, generally without any support from specific institutions or projects, with the exception of maize and beans regional specialists in Korça.
The Albanian government is promoting organic farming and the surface of this area has increased over the past ten years. This to a certain extent expands the diversity of local varieties used in agriculture.
The first collection expedition in Albanian territory was organized in 1941, led by the scientist Hans Stubbe, mainly to study cereals and legumes. The samples collected (around 355) were taken for storage at the Plant Genetics Institute and Research (PGIR) in Germany. The information for these samples is currently available in the PGIR database.
The first activities organized and backed by the government of the time were undertaken during the 1950s and 60s by the Agricultural Research Institute of Lushnja. Many local grain varieties, barley, oats, maize, legumes, etc., were gathered, with which the first collections of agricultural crops were created. Only for grain, the 1956 mission gathered 24 local varieties.
In the early 1970s, the Agricultural University of Tirana under the leadership of Prof. Përmeti, organized several research missions and collections of autochthonous varieties. About 220 new species were collected, mainly of corn and beans
Between 1970 and 1980, some collection missions were carried out by the Institute of Shkodra, the Agricultural Research Institute of Lushnje, of that of Tobacco in Cërrik and the Research Institute for Fruits in Vlora.
During these missions, more than 2,000 genetic samples were collected.
After the collapse of the communist regime, 6 missions of European scientists landed in Albania to gather genetic varieties that could be jeopardized by the opening up of the economy. The 14 scientists collected 1,136 samples from 210 regions of Albania.