By Giselle P. Jordan

THE Philippines has deposited 4,417 samples of Filipino rice in the so-called Doomsday Vault in Norway, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Sunday.

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault seed vault, located on Spitsbergen Island, is the world’s most secure long-term seed bank. It is designed to protect the genetic blueprints of the world’s crops from threats such as war, natural disasters, pandemics and climate change.

The DA called it “agriculture’s Noah’s Ark.”

“Part science fiction, part insurance policy, it is buried deep in permafrost and engineered to outlast civilization’s uncertainties,” it added.

Opened in 2008, the vault is regularly unlocked for new deposits, with the latest being in October. Here, seeds are sealed in aluminum envelopes and saved for potential use in the future.

“Each genetic resource accession has been meticulously profiled and documented, ensuring its identity and integrity,” the DA said.

The majority of the samples from the Philippines were collected by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice). This began in the 1980s, around the same time PhilRice was created.

This year, the preparation and shipping of samples to Norway was led by Jonathan Niones, Genetic Resources Division head at PhilRice.

The collection includes heirloom grains from Cordillera farmers, commonly used varieties such as Dinorado and Milagrosa and modern hybrids that are bred to survive droughts.

PhilRice described the opportunity to send seeds to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault as “both [a] milestone and [a] metaphor.”

This is the first time in four decades that rice from the Philippines have been stored outside the country. The samples are meant to safeguard Philippine rice diversity.

PhilRice Executive Director John de Leon said the presence of duplicates in the Svalbard seed vault offers “peace of mind,” providing a safeguard amid possible losses in the future.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said: “Each seed carries more than potential harvests — it holds stories of Filipino resilience, heritage, and taste.”

“It is comforting to know that somewhere, the heart of Filipino agriculture continues to beat, no matter what comes,” he added.

The DA said that PhilRice planned to send another batch of rice seeds next year, furthering its commitment to the preservation of global rice biodiversity.

Published Date: November 3, 2025