A vault storing the world's most precious seeds now has over one million different varieties. It recently received a consignment of seeds from 70,000 different crops. Global Seed Vault is buried in an icy mountain in Norway's Arctic Circle. It opened ten years ago to protect the future of the world's food supply. Climate change and droughts around the world are threatening many different species of plants. The vault holds back-ups of seeds stored in other seed banks around the world. A senior scientist at the Crop Trust said: "Hitting the million mark is really significant."
Workers at the vault are surprised to reach the million mark so soon. The crisis in Syria meant there were 90,000 fewer seeds at the vault. The latest delivery included seeds for cereals and more unusual crops like the onion potato. There were also Bambara groundnuts, which are a drought tolerant crop. The Crop Trust spoke about the importance of the vault. It said: "Safeguarding such a huge range of seeds means scientists will have the best chance of developing nutritious and climate-resilient crops that can ensure future generations don't just survive, but thrive."