Crop Cousins, promise for the future
COUSIN is the European Union-funded project on the use and conservation of wild species for more sustainable, resilient and nutritionally valuable agriculture
Latest News
Mission to Wageningen University & Research and stakeholder engagement activities
During July 2026, Prof. Ferdinando Branca, Prof. of Vegetable and Flower Crops at the Dipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente (Di3A) of the University of Catania, met on the 13th of July at the NPEC with Dr. Rick van Zedde, for visiting the phenotyping...
Unlocking wild plant genetics to develop climate-resilient, disease-resistant wheat. Updates from the wheat working group
To secure the future of global wheat production against the growing threats of climate change and evolving agricultural diseases, researchers at HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research (ATK) have announced significant breakthroughs in crop wild relative (CWR)...
COUSIN at AgroSemana 2026 with Universidade Católica Portuguesa
On 5 September 2026, COUSIN Partner Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP) participated in AgroSemana 2026 – Feira Agrícola do Norte, held at Espaço AGROS in Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal. Through a dedicated stand, UCP presented several ongoing projects contributing to...
Discovering Crop Wild Relatives with COUSIN video scribing
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The journey of plant domestication
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The importance of Crop Wild Reltives
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The characterization of Crop Wild Relatives unveiled
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The use of Crop Wild Relatives in breeding
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The Crop Wild Relatives Conservation Strategies explained
CWRs, a promise for the future
Crop Wild Relatives (CWRs) are often seen as the COUSINs of domesticated crops given their close kinship and their role as important sources of natural genetic variation. In this sense they represent a valuable resource for the urgently required agroecological transition. Such a transition results in more diverse, sustainable and nutritious food, in line with the EU Green Deal policy and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, CWRs can be important allies. In fact, currently 75% of the world’s food is generated from only twelve plant species and since the 1900s, some 75% of plant genetic diversity has been lost as farmers worldwide have left their diverse set of local varieties and landraces for genetically uniform, high-yielding varieties. From this perspective, Crop Cousins are a promise for the future.
Cousin’s brochure contains the description and goals of the project. It is available in multiple languages, download the one you prefer and share it!
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