Answering survey questions ranging from how they use inputs and conserve their seeds to how each member of the family contributes to production, Cuban farmers have participated in a Treaty Benefit-sharing Fund Project that is analyzing the current contribution of beans and maize to food security and family health – and also looking at ways to improve that contribution. Maize and beans are two crops of vital importance for the sustainability of traditional production systems in Cuba’s mountain zones and in the daily diet of the Cuban population. The project is working in two areas of Cuba, Guantamano and Pinar del Río, to identify the diversity that exists in the maize and bean population of the regions, measuring its nutritional value and specifically looking at ways to improve seed conservation. It also is providing training on the sustainable use and management of maize and beans in order to conserve the genetic integrity of traditional varieties. Fundamental Research Institute on Tropical Agriculture of Cuba (INIFAT) has organized the project to focus on evolutionary processes in traditional farming systems. The work is being done in rural communities, in order to have a fuller picture of the ecosystems and the nutritional value of the local varieties. Farmers who were chosen by the Fundamental Research Institute on Tropical Agriculture of Cuba (INIFAT) has organized the project to focus on evolutionary processes in traditional farming systems. The work is being done in rural communities, in order to have a fuller picture of the ecosystems and the nutritional value of the local varieties.