The seed, for the farmer, is not merely the source of future plants / food, it is the storage place of culture, of history. Seed is the first link in the food chain. Seed is the ultimate symbol of food security.

Free exchange of seed among farmers has been the basis of maintaining biodiversity as well as food security. This exchange is based on cooperation and reciprocity.

The new technologies like the technologies of the green revolution and biotechnologies, devalue the cultural and traditional knowledge embodied in the seed, and erode the holistic knowledge of the seed from the community. This results in the seed itself becoming extinct, as the existence of the seed is tied intimately with its holistic knowledge.

Seed, for the Navdanya conservation initiative, represents the accumulation over centuries of people’s knowledge and by being a reflection of the options available to them, it represents their choice.