Global: Botanical pranks from around the world
06.04.11
Only on this day... Some weird and wonderful April Fools stories emerged on 1 April. First to make me chuckle was of a novelty black and white daffodil grown by scientists in Cornwall, UK.
The black and white daffodil bred by Swedish scientist, Dr Inga Johansson, at the Eden Project represents the colours of the Cornish flag so this new breed is sure to cause a big stir among the legions of Cornwall's dedicated daffodil growers!
But they kept on coming. The next one, issued in a press release by indigenous people's champions Survival International, actually seems like a pretty good idea! Survival reported a UN Intellectual Property Tribunal in New York today, led by Dr Desiree Dauphinoise, said that 1% of the global revenue from potato sales should be handed over to indigenous people in South America "in recognition of the fact that potatoes as we know them are effectively an indigenous creation."
Dr Dauphinoise said: "Tribal peoples in Peru were the first cultivators of potatoes between 3000 and 2000 BC, and as creators of the world’s fourth-largest food crop, we believe it is only right that the debt the world owes indigenous people is finally acknowledged." With predicted annual revenue
of $20 million the South American Native Tribes Executive (Sante), who had brought the case before the tribunal, celebrated a ‘major victory’. Sante’s President, Jorge Papas, said: "This is a great victory for Sante and tribal people around the world. With the royalties we get from the potatoes, we will be able to buy back some of the lands that ranchers, loggers, and oil companies have taken from us."