Seed of approximately 1000 current and potential forage species is held by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT (ABIC), ILRI, National and other International genebanks around the world for use in agronomy trials, plant breeding, soil conservation, nutritional research, botany, and training.

ABIC and ILRI, who hold seed under the auspices of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), will provide where possible and without charge, forage seeds in small experimental quantities (0.1‒20 g) from the germplasm collection under a material transfer agreement, as part of their policy of maximizing the utilization of material for research, breeding and training. Larger quantities sufficient to sow up to one quarter of a hectare of a limited number of promising accessions will require that requesters cover the costs of production and shipping. Recipients are requested to supply ILRI or ABIC with relevant data and information collected during evaluation and utilization. National genebanks may have different policies for seed distribution.

Detailed information on passport data and seed availability of particular cultivars and accessions can be found in the International Genetic Resource Database, GENESYS.

Note: Please be aware that this seed is costly to produce and maintain, and should be treated accordingly in any evaluation. (see “ Making the most of small amounts of seed.” )