The future of the locavore movement might be in a cryopreservation facility in Newport, Rhode Island, where the SVF Foundation is hoping to catalog and ultimately promote rare heritage livestock breeds by freezing their embryos and semen.
It sounds like science fiction, but the science is very real and reflects a back-to-nature approach with fertility technology being used to make sure that heritage livestock are available in case things don't work out with our industrialized food system. Dr. George Saperstein, chief scientific adviser to the foundation, explained that idea to The New York Times:
"Think of this as a safety valve program. If there was a disaster, if something like the potato famine of livestock ever hit, these frozen embryos would be made available, and in one generation we would be back in business."
The SVF Foundation launched in 2001 with the goal of centralizing the effort to protect endangered breeds by storing germplasm -- a particular breed's genetic resources -- in the same fashion as seed banks.
Heritage breeds are those which have evolved through natural selection rather than selective breeding practices. This is seen as beneficial because of the potential for increased resistance to disease and the ability to adapt better to a given climate. The argument is that because the industrialized agriculture system demands consistency in livestock, the possibility of a massive disruption to that system is significantly greater.
In addition to storing embryos and semen, the SVF Foundation has begun to sell animals to other farms in an effort to create satellite populations. This feeds into the group's secondary mission, which is education about the importance of heritage breeds. The organization believes that starts at the dinner table.
It's a bit disconcerting to think about the amount of science involved in ensuring the survival of breeds untouched by science. At this point, I think I'm ready for the three-course meal gum.
[Image via Flickr: dok1]
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