INCREASE

The INCREASE project addresses various aspects of the management of genetic resources of food legumes, which are crucial for sustainability, food security and human health. It addresses technological, scientific and societal issues aimed at supporting agricultural sustainability and innovation in Europe.

The INCREASE project aims to improve the management and use of food legume genetic resources in Europe through an innovative and collaborative approach:

• Improving access to legume genetic resources by increasing the quantity, quality and accessibility of information available to users.
• Develop "smart collections" of genetic resources in the form of nested core collections representing the full diversity of each species. These collections will be used to select traits of interest to users.
• Adopt cutting-edge genomics and molecular phenotyping technologies and artificial intelligence-based tools to improve the characterization of genetic resources and thus enable the identification of traits useful for crops and food.
• Set up a decentralized data management infrastructure, using technologies such as blockchain to enable efficient data sharing and integration.
• Involve citizens through participatory science experiments, enabling them to contribute to the conservation and management of legumes, while raising public awareness.
• Collaborate internationally to broaden the scope of the project and facilitate the integration of genetic resources available worldwide.

• Improve the conservation and use of genetic resources by setting high quality standards across Europe and beyond.
• Increase the quantity and quality of data associated with genetic resources.
• Develop innovative solutions for sharing genetic resources.
• Develop new legume varieties that are better adapted to European environments and more resistant to climate change, in particular by exploring diversity for drought tolerance in chickpea and common bean.