Biodiversity prospecting or bioprospecting is the systematic search for biochemical and genetic information in nature in order to develop commercially-valuable products for pharmaceutical, agricultural, cosmetic and other applications.
- Bioprospecting is today seen as a crucial tool in developing new drugs which are largely plant derived.
- While enriching our lives, the global consensus is that bioprospecting must be a sustainable activity which brings social and economic benefits to local communities.
- But it also has a downside: biopiracy — defined as exploiting knowledge and genetic resources of indigenous communities and gaining monopoly over them through patents.
- The 2010 Nagoya Protocol on “Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization” is an international agreement aimed at ensuring equitable sharing of benefits.
- It also spells out the need for conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.