South African rooibos seeds to travel to the International Space Station

The aim is to find out how the seeds adapt to conditions in space and whether there is a future for sustainable food production beyond Earth, says Dawie de Villiers, head of the South African Rooibos Authority.

The seeds will be the first from the African continent to be sent into space, he continues.

When the seeds' journey is complete, they will be sown together with seeds that have remained in the soil. If and when the seedlings take root, they will be studied.

Rooibos, which means "red bush", is found only in South Africa and forms the basis of the mildly sweet tea variety.