Delegates from indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada, Amazonia, Cauca and other regions of the country visited the Cenicaña experimental station in a day coordinated by Agrosavia with the aim of learning first-hand about the experience of the sugar cane agroindustry in the improvement genetics of Cenicaña Colombia (CC) cane varieties and in seed production and conservation.

The visit is part of the activities agreed upon between the Ministry of Agriculture, Agrosavia and ICA, within the framework of the Permanent Table of Indigenous Concertation, to design a strategy for the conservation, exchange and production of native seeds taking into account the particularities and priorities of each indigenous people. 

During the visit, a team of plant breeders from Cenicaña explained the process of development and selection of sugarcane varieties with a site-specific agriculture approach on which research in the Colombian sugarcane agroindustry is based and guided a tour by the germplasm bank made up of more than 1600 varieties. The Center's biotechnology team also showed the main advances in the sector in the use of biotechnological tools.

“For us it is very important that the delegates of the Permanent Indigenous Concertation Table are aware of the enormous benefits that improved varieties can have, the use of biotechnological tools and also the appreciation that we give to native seeds from different research centers. and Creoles,” indicated Julio Ramírez Durán, Head of the Agrosavia Seed Department.