As part of the AEGIS Plus project, the Centre for Genetic Resources (CGN, The Netherlands) has completed a desk study assessing the availability and use of accessions held within the European Collection, based on self-reporting by AEGIS Associate Members.

With a response rate of 97%, the exercise confirmed that over 119,000 AEGIS accessions are actively conserved across the network, of which 96% were reported as available for distribution under the Standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA). However, the report highlights that self-reported figures may overestimate real-world accessibility.

Administrative inconsistencies – largely due to infrequent updates to EURISCO and fragmented reporting arrangements –  were identified across multiple institutions, and AEGIS designation was found to have little discernible influence on user demand. The conclusions are candid: AEGIS has so far had limited practical impact on operational quality and user recognition, though the framework has contributed to establishing a common quality baseline and identifying capacity-building needs across the network.

The desk study is one of several activities under AEGIS Plus, a capacity-building initiative running from November 2025 and funded by the German Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity (BMLEH). The project also encompasses workshops on documentation and genebank operations, peer-review visits, support for safety duplication of up to 700 AEGIS accessions, and revision of the genebank operational manual template.

The report is available here

Learn more about AEGIS Plus