The system containing the information about all the germplasms is the heart of every genebank. It contains data about the seed samples and plants, their collection sites, characteristics and amount of seeds, to name a few.

“Without the information in the database, we wouldn’t be able to keep the plant collection alive or conduct research with it. To have a user-friendly, reliable and up-to-date information system is thereby vital to make use of the Nordic seed collection to secure our agriculture for the future”, Lise Lykke Steffensen, Executive Director at NordGen said.

The SESTO information system, which has been in operation until now, was developed in 2002. It was used by the Nordic and Baltic gene banks and several gene banks in South Africa. However, the code of the programme is now outdated and it is difficult to find programmers who master it in a meaningful way. Therefore, after thorough investigation and discussion, it was decided that all information would be transferred to the international platform GRIN-Global, which is widely known in the gene bank community. Sesto's successor is the Nordic Baltic Genebanks Information System (GENBIS).

“NBIS is a continuation on the close collaboration the Nordic and Baltic countries have had for a long time in the area of plant genetic resources. This new information system will lead to an improvement of the services we can offer, both internally and externally, when it comes to information about the genetic resources we need for developing agricultural solutions for the future”, said Külli Annamaa, Head of the Estonian Genebank.

The NBISi information system will be used to use both the employees of the gene banks and the open information systems available to researchers, breeders and other stakeholders wishing to make inquiries and order material deposited in the gene banks.

The GENBIS address on the Internet is www.nordic-baltic-genebanks.org. At the same time, comprehensive instructions for use can also be found.