The federal government is investing $760,000 in Canada’s seed sector, to help modernize seed regulations and enhance global marketing.
Much of the funding will be used to continue the work of the Seed Synergy Collaboration Project which is currently creating a new vision for seed sector regulation in Canada.
Why it matters: Canada’s seed production and marketing system is complex and highly regulated. The organizations involved in representing the seed sector want to make it clearer and simpler, especially for new entrants and new innovations.
Read Also
Ontario Agricultural Stewardship Initiative third intake opens in August
Ontario’s Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (ASI)$3 million cost-share program intake opens on Aug. 13 at 9 a.m., helping agriculture, agri-food, and agri-based businesses improve energy efficiency and increase competitiveness, sustainability, and productivity.
Six organizations that represent the seed sector are involved in the long-term project to look at how to make the seed sector and its regulations more streamlined and effective. The project is also looking at how to reduce barriers for new entrants to the seed sector.
The funding was announced at the Ottawa Valley Farm Show by Member of Parliament Mike Bossio.
The Seed Synergy project is already a couple of years into its development. A green paper, with broad proposals and ideas, has been created to prompt discussion in the industry.
Roy van Wyk, executive director of the Canadian Seed Institute, says that the funding has helped pay for cross-country consultation on the Seed Synergy green paper, not only with members of the organizations involved, but also industry stakeholders such as grain handling companies and producer organizations.
Dave Carey, executive director of the Canadian Seed Trade Association (CSTA) says that a survey is available at the Seed Synergy Collaboration Project website for anyone in the sector who would like to provide input into the ideas in the green paper.
The organizations expect to have a white paper, a more complex proposal with more concrete numbers, out by the summer so that the process can continue to align with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s seed regulation modernization plan. Then it could take several more years for the Seed Synergy plan to be implemented, depending on if the changes can be made by the industry, by government regulation or by legislation.
Legislative changes to the Seed Act can take a while, says Carey who pointed out the 23 years and three attempts in legislation it took to get Plant Breeders Rights legislation passed.
The six organizations involved include:
- The Canadian Seed Growers Association (CSGA)
- Canadian Seed Trade Association
- The Canadian Seed Institute
- The Commercial Seed Analysts Association of Canada
- The Canadian Plant Technology Agency
- CropLife Canada.
The funding was provided through the Growing Forward 2 program’s AgriRisk and AgriMarketing sections to the CSGA and through AgriMarketing to CSTA. While much of the funding was used for the Seed Synergy project, some of it was used by the CSTA to maintain international networks and build global opportunities.
