Svalbard Global Seed Vault secures the world’s largest safety backup of our crop diversity

Way up north, in the permafrost, 1300 kilometers beyond the Arctic Circle, is the world's largest secure seed storage, opened by the Norwegian Government in February 2008. From all across the globe, crates of seeds are sent here for safe and secure long-term storage in cold and dry rock vaults.

The Seed Vault’s operations are managed through a partnership of the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Global Crop Diversity Trust (Crop Trust) and the Nordic Genetic Resource Centre (NordGen).

The Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food, representing the Norwegian Government, has the overall legal, administrative and financial responsibility for the Seed Vault.

The Crop Trust, established in 2004 to provide financial support to the world’s gene banks, co-funds the Seed Vault operations and funds shipments of seeds sent to the Seed Vault from developing countries.

NordGen, the Nordic countries’ genebank and knowledge centre for genetic resources, is the focal point for depositors and responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Seed Vault. NordGen also operates a publicly accessible online database of the deposited seeds (nordgen. org/seedportal) and hosts the Seed Vault’s International Advisory Panel.