Tunisia is reviving ancient wheat varieties: A farm in Tunisia is attempting to cultivate an old Tunisain variety of wheat as the effects of the climate crisis have caused crops to suffer, wheat farmer Hasan Chetoui told Reuters. Rather than relying on a single harvest in the summer, Chetoui will use ancient wheat that he believes is capable of producing multiple times each season. These ancient seeds may offer resilience against erratic weather patterns.

Expert opinions are divided: While some experts question the efficacy of old varieties compared to modern high-yield wheat, others, like agriculture policy expert Hussein al-Rhaili, advocate for older variations of wheat. "Original seeds are rooted in nature, rooted in the quality of the soil and rooted according to the location, and they have the ability to adapt," Hussein al-Rhaili, a Tunisian agriculture policy expert, told the newswire.

Research on ancient wheat has already begun: Scientists began in 2022 analyzing 12k specimens of centuries-old wheat collections from Britain’s Natural History Museum and more from the John Innes Center in Norwich to understand their genetic makeup. The John Innes team is cross-breeding older varieties with modern ones to engineer more resilient and nutritious wheat varieties.

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