— Healthier lives, more resilient livelihoods through greater diversity in what we grow and eat —
Our Featured Projects
Engaging women and youth in vegetable production and distribution networks to close the ‘vegetable gap’ and improve livelihoods and nutrition in Ethiopia and Kenya.
Sustainable and climate-smart agricultural and post-harvest practices to increase vegetable consumption in urban and peri-urban areas of West Africa.
Conserve and use African vegetable biodiversity to address malnutrition by increasing the production and consumption of nutritious vegetables.
The World’s Largest Public Vegetable Genebank
The World Vegetable Center genebank maintains a large collection of public domain germplasm for the current and future use of all humankind. We distribute seed samples of our germplasm accessions and advanced breeding lines worldwide.
With 65,152 accessions encompassing germplasm of 133 genera and 330 species from 155 countries, the World Vegetable Center genebank includes globally important vegetables such as tomato, onion, peppers and cabbage as well as more than 10,000 accessions of traditional vegetables.
Each year the Center distributes about 10,000 seed samples to researchers across the globe. Over the past four decades this has led to the release of hundreds of new vegetable varieties with particular impact in developing countries.
Global presence and impact
Center researchers lead and participate in projects throughout Asia and Africa. We have about 400 staff engaged in this spread of activities, and seek to partner with governments, nongovernmental organizations, universities, research institutes, and the private sector to promote prosperity for the poor and health for all.
Across continents
Across continents Pratices of urban farming From World Vegetable Center Annual Report 2024 Selected highlights 61,000 new jobs were created through vegetable businesses in Cambodia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, [...]
Tomato breeding innovations
Tomato breeding innovations WorldVeg Tomato Breeder, Dr Assaf Eybishitz Tomatoes are the single most consumed vegetable, with an estimated 190 million tonnes produced each year, and are a nutritious and important [...]
Stacked for Success: Multi-trait chilies spice up breeding
Stacked for Success: Multi-trait chilies spice up breeding Derek Barchenger, senior scientist in the organization’s pepper breeding program, checks chili demonstration plots at WorldVeg in Tainan, Taiwan. Pic by Neil Palmer/WorldVeg [...]
Africa
Beneficial biota or bugs of burden? The microbial dilemma at the heart of seed conservation
Beneficial biota or bugs of burden? The microbial dilemma at the heart of seed conservation OPINION By Abdul Shango Research Associate – Seed Quality and Conservation Office location: Arusha, Tanzania Okra (Abelmoschus [...]
Greener Greens Phase Two: Agroecological approaches take African leafy vegetables to the next level
Greener Greens Phase Two: Agroecological approaches take African leafy vegetables to the next level Farmers in Murang’a County trialed agroecological practices to grow amaranth, African nightshade, kale, and pumpkin, promoting sustainable and [...]
Dutch Deputy Minister Meets Beneficiaries of SafeVeg Project in Benin
Dutch Deputy Minister Meets Beneficiaries of SafeVeg Project in Benin On Thursday, May 26, 2025—coinciding with the Feast of the Ascension—Mr. Steven Collet, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, met with [...]
WorldVeg’s Offices in Africa: 📍 Eastern & Southern Africa Office – 📍 West & Central Africa Office (Dry Regions) – 📍 West & Central Africa Office (Humid Regions)
Asia
Taiwan’s newest chilies turn down the burn – without dialing back the flavor
Taiwan’s newest chilies turn down the burn - without dialing back the flavor Two new, milder chili pepper types are spicing up culinary possibilities in eastern Taiwan - without overpowering the palate. Known [...]
Accelerating Success: New tomato project puts seed companies in pole position
Accelerating Success: New tomato project puts seed companies in pole position Vibrant tomatoes ripening in the field A new tomato project launched by the Asia and Pacific Seed Association (APSA) and the [...]
Ready, set, grow! NASA-pioneered research accelerates chili breeding
Ready, set, grow! NASA-pioneered research accelerates chili breeding Andrew Zhang joined the WorldVeg pepper breeding team as an intern through the World Food Prize Foundation’s Borlaug-Ruan International Internship Program. A modified [...]
WorldVeg’s Offices in Asia: 📍 Headquarters in Taiwan – 📍 South & Central Asia Office – 📍 East & Southeast Asia Office
Latin America / Caribbean
Hot Prospects: WorldVeg chilies make a strong debut in Mexico’s first harvest
Hot Prospects: WorldVeg chilies make a strong debut in Mexico’s first harvest WorldVeg chilies in Santiago Miahuatlán, Puebla. High-yielding chilies developed by the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) are showing great promise [...]
WorldVeg opens a new country office in Mexico – opening opportunities for greater impact in Latin America and the Caribbean
WorldVeg opens a new country office in Mexico – opening opportunities for greater impact in Latin America and the Caribbean For more than 50 years, the World Vegetable Center has been at the [...]
Growth Habit
Perspectives to expand your view of vegetables
Do home gardens increase vegetable consumption in Africa?
Analysis of the impact of home gardens in Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya shows the importance of carefully identifying local barriers to growing and eating vegetables at home.
Data and farming innovations aid crop pest risk prediction and management
Alert systems can empower farmers and other plant health system stakeholders with low-cost solutions to mitigate risk.
Adding more greens to Africa’s Green Revolution
The vegetable seed sector in sub-Saharan Africa has received little attention in the development agenda. World Vegetable Center scientists teamed up with experts and managers of leading vegetable seed companies in Asia and Africa to define a way forward.
Wild relatives need a place at the table
Recent research indicates neglecting the "unruly" family members of cultivated vegetable crops imperils future food security and our resilience to climate change.
MY SUCCESS
High yielding and more resistant chili hybrids being developed in Sri Lanka
High yielding and more resistant chili hybrids being developed in Sri Lanka Cover of the Yummy Hot F1 hybrid seed pack, developed in collaboration with WorldVeg Taiwan and the CGIAR-funded FRESH initiative [...]
Making mungbean more productive and profitable at the 2024 International Mungbean Congress
Making mungbean more productive and profitable at the 2024 International Mungbean Congress More than 100 participants from 25 countries gathered for the 2024 International Mungbean Congress in Bangkok, Thailand from 5-7 March. Major [...]
Revolutionizing food safety in Cambodia with new pesticide residue testing technology
Revolutionizing food safety in Cambodia with new pesticide residue testing technology Pesticide residues are a major concern in imported and locally produced vegetables. With the introduction of this state-of-the-art technology, Cambodia has [...]
New pepper varieties released in Taiwan and Nigeria
New pepper varieties released in Taiwan and Nigeria In Taiwan, bell pepper seeds are mostly imported from abroad, are susceptible to impacts of international trade, and many varieties are not suitable to [...]
RECENT RESEARCH
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WorldVeg’s Donors
Support for World Vegetable Center activities is provided by project donors and the following long-term strategic donors.
Thanks to UK aid from the UK government, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), the governments of Taiwan, Germany, Thailand, the Philippines, South Korea and Japan.