This paper examines the vital role of genebanks in the conservation and use of plant genetic resources, highlighting the South Pacific’s version of the Irish Potato Famine and the organizational interdependence necessary to respond to disastrous losses in a cultivated food crop. We conducted an ethnobotanical fieldwork in Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Cook Islands, interviewing over 50 taro experts and farmers to gather the ‘Tale of Taro Leaf Blight’. Taro is the staple ‘prestige’ food crop of Samoa but in 1993, taro leaf blight (TLB), Phytophthora colocasiae , caused an almost 100% loss of the crop, threatening both food security and traditional cultural practices. Several international organizations were formed to conduct botanical expeditions to re-gather crop wild relatives of taro, Colocasia esculenta , from their various centres of origin. This parental material was used in a 10-year breeding cycle process to produce viable TLB-resistant varieties and replant the fallow fields of Samoa. The duty to safeguard these global accessions led to the formalization of CePaCT, which houses this core collection. The collection, conservation, multiplication, and distribution of taro has had a significant impact beyond the regional needs of the Pacific. Taro germplasm samples were distributed to countries worldwide affected by the blight, aiding in staving off potential famines and economic crises. This ancient aroid is one of the most consumed vegetables in the Pacific. It is an indispensable nutritional and caloric resource for subsistence farming nations, and carries deep ethnobotanical and cultural significance.

中文翻译：

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芋头叶枯病的故事：保护太平洋地区芋头遗传多样性的全球努力

本文考察了基因库在植物遗传资源保护和利用方面的重要作用，重点介绍了南太平洋版的爱尔兰马铃薯饥荒，以及应对种植粮食作物的灾难性损失所必需的组织相互依存关系。我们在斐济、瓦努阿图和库克群岛进行了民族植物学实地考察，采访了 50 多名芋头专家和农民，以收集“芋头叶枯病的故事”。芋头是萨摩亚的主要“威望”粮食作物，但在 1993 年，芋头叶枯病 (TLB) 和 Phytophthora colocasiae 导致该作物几乎 100% 损失，威胁着粮食安全和传统文化习俗。成立了几个国际组织进行植物考察，以从不同的原产地重新收集芋头的作物野生近缘种 Colocasia esculenta。这种亲本材料被用于一个 10 年的育种周期过程，以生产可行的 TLB 抗性品种并重新种植萨摩亚的休耕地。保护这些全球种质的责任导致了 CePaCT 的正式化，其中包含这个核心收藏。芋头的收集、保存、繁殖和分配已经产生了超出太平洋区域需求的重大影响。芋头种质样本被分发到世界各地受疫病影响的国家，帮助避免潜在的饥荒和经济危机。这种古老的植物是太平洋地区消费量最大的蔬菜之一。它是自给农业国家不可或缺的营养和热量资源，具有深厚的民族植物学和文化意义。