SEED LLP AND TRADEBernice SlutskyAmerican Seed Trade Association

TOPICS Seed movement during seed

product life cycle Quality assurance during seed

product life cycle LLP considerations

SEED MOVEMENT THROUGHOUT SEED PRODUCT LIFECYCLE Seed can move across borders at almost every point in the life

cycle Research and development facilities can be in a different

country than the production of breeders seed Breeders seed is often produced in a different country than

breeding facilities and the production of hybrids A shipping container of breeders seed can consist hundreds of individual

packages of small amounts of seed representing that many different varieties of breeders seed

Counter season production of commercial seed is the norm Seed cleaning, conditioning and packaging before export to

the country of cultivation Re-export is common practice

GLOBAL SEED FLOWS CORN, SOYBEAN, COTTON AND CANOLA SEED

Corn seedSoyCottonCanola Sorghum

QUALITY MANAGEMENT

SEED QUALITY STANDARDS Critical control points throughout the product life cycle The importance of seed quality and product integrity has

been recognized by the industry since its inception. Tracking, recordkeeping, testing and other measures with

appropriate management systems are essential parts of product development and the commercial life cycle for purposes of quality assurance and seed product integrity

Maintaining a seed variety’s trueness to type is critical for market acceptance.

Quality standards are based upon market expectations and the limits of biological systems. Therefore, thresholds or tolerances are a component of seed quality standards.

SEED QUALITY STANDARDS OECD Seed Schemes

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Seed Schemes are rules used by 58 participating countries to certify and label seed for varietal purity for international movement.

Facilitates movement of seed through varietal certification Use of labels and certificates for seed produced and processed for

international trade according to agreed principles

Seed Testing International Seed Testing Association (ISTA)—orange

certificate Association of Official Seed Analysts (US and Canada)

PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP: EXCELLENCE THROUGH STEWARDSHIPETS’s mission is to promote the responsible management of plant biotechnology, primarily by developing and encouraging implementation of product stewardship practices and by educating the public about those practices.Principles and management practicesGuides to understanding and implementing stewardship programs and quality management systems Global stewardship audit process

SEED LLP: CONSIDERATIONS Predictability and transparency in the

management of import transactions, such as testing and sampling protocols

Establishment of transparent and science-based management of import/export transactions with aligned approaches where possible

Understanding of existing seed quality standards and practices and the role they can play in LLP policies

SEED LLP: CONSIDERATIONS Mechanism for sharing environmental

safety assessment information among regulators

Use of existing data and cultivation safety assessments in approaches to seed LLP

Identify approaches specific to highly familiar traits