Association of Official Seed AnalystsSociety of Commercial Seed Technologists

VOLUNTARY LABELING BY SEEDSMENAuthor(s): Edgar BrownSource: Proceedings of the Association of Official Seed Analysts of North America, Vol. 11(JANUARY 1919), pp. 41-42Published by: Association of Official Seed Analysts and the Society of Commercial Seed TechnologistsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23430585 .

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the seed trade which is always vitally interested in anything which will improve present methods.

Much may be accomplished in an educational way to bring about closest co-operation between the association and the Seed Trade. It would seem advisable that this association go on record as approving ?.nd recommending that each state, where a testing laboratory is

maintained, offer a week's short course in seed testing each year. This course should be open to seedsmen and anyone interested. This has already been tried in some states and has proven very suc cessful. The course should be given at a time when most seedsmen

could attend. It also seems advisable that the Seed Analysts Asso ciation and the Seed Trade Association should meet at least every two years in the same city, and that some of the sessions be open to

both associations.

Time will not permit the enumeration of many methods which could be employed to bring about desired co-operation. It is not hard to discover methods when the spirit of co-operation is present and it is hoped that each year the Seed Analysts and the Seed Trade will become more and more united in their efforts to produce and distribute only the best seed, thereby greatly aiding in the agricul tural development of this country.

VOLUNTARY LABELING BY SEEDSMEN

Edgar Brown, in charge of the Federal Seed Laboratory, Washington, D. C.

In the summer of 1917 the Secretary of Agriculture asked repre sentatives of the seed trade to meet in Washington to consider a

plan for the labeling of all crop seeds sold in this country. This meeting was attended by representatives of the Seed Trade

Associations as well as individual seedsmen.

It was proposed on the part of the Department of Agriculture that seedsmen should label all farm seeds, sold in lots of ten pounds or more, with the percentage of pure seed, the percentage of germi nation and the date of the germination test, and, also, that the country of origin should be stated in the case of the following seeds: Beans, soy beans, Turkestan alfalfa and red clover from Southern Europe and Chile. It was the unanimous opinion of those present that this plan should be put into operation. Later, most of the larger seed houses and many of the smaller ones individually pledged their firms to comply with it.

In the spring of 1918, the Department of Agriculture made a series of purchases of seeds from seed dealers throughout the coun

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try, with the purpose of checking up the extent to which this agree ment was being complied with.

Purchases were made of the seeds of red clover, crimson clover

and red top. In the following table is shown the number of lots pur chased and the proportion of these lots which were labeled or un

labeled :

PURCHASED LOTS OF RED CLOVER, CRIMSON CLOVER, AND REDTOP SEED, SHOWING PROPORTION LABELED

AND UNLABELED

Percentage of Lots Labeled With:

X 3 ft

fi o © <s-S ©

C

f S-2 a +» O P

« e

£< rt

4

A © g*

o © "o

^ § B ̂ *

Percent Lots Label 05 C.5 ° 3

>>'43 g-g a $ © © S.50H ft

From seedsmen agreeing to label . 108 40 38 29 34 25 56

From other seedsmen. . 613 17 14 7 13 8 82 From all seedsmen...-., . 721 20 17 11 16 10 78

It will be noticed that a larger percentage of the seedsmen who

specifically agreed to label their seeds were found to comply with the agreement than was the case with seedsmen who did not so

express themselves.

It was a great surprise that the proportion of samples properly labeled was found to be so small, and in no case were samples found

which were designated as of foreign origin, although there is no doubt but that there was much red clover seed from Italy on the market at

that time.

SEED LAWS AND SEED TESTING FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF SEEDSMEN

Wm. G. Scarlett, Wm. G. Scarlett Seed Co., Baltimore, Md., Repre

senting the Seed Trade Association and the Grass Dealers Association.

It is always a pleasure for seedsmen to be in conference with the Association of Official Seed Analysts, as well as with individual

analysts. We find that these conferences invariably develop new ideas and new ideals. It has been our privilege for a number of years in the past, to meet with the seed analysts, and I believe the first real constructive meeting took place in Boston the latter part of 1907, at which time the Boston Bill was framed. The Boston Bill was the

basis of legislative argument until the new Uniform Bill came into

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