Page 7 - Breeding and regulatory opportunities, Renaud

Preface

After years of dedication to deeper knowledge of organic plant breeding and

regulatory policy for the purpose of understanding and advancing the organic

seed movement, the completion of this thesis is a momentous event. Many

individuals and organizations have contributed to the success of the research,

and to all I am truly grateful.

First and foremost, I must acknowledge the contribution of my main advisors:

Edith Lammerts van Bueren, Jim Myers, Janice Jiggins and Jack Juvik. Each of

these experts shared their passion and knowledge about their unique ields,

with Edith Lammerts van Bueren and Jim Myers also managing during the

time of this dissertation process to co-edit ‘Organic Crop Breeding’, a field-

defining reference for academic and practical use.

For the organic regulation component of this research, I would like to thank the

organic certiiers, growers, seed companies, government oicials and various

seed organizations for taking the time to be interviewed and participate in

the analytical discussion of how to evolve cohesive and efective national

and international organic seed regulatory policies. I’m thankful for the critical

feedback and commentary on these chapters that was provided by Alison

Hendry, Sylvie Baumgartel, Megan Bayles, Ric Gaudet, Paul Struik and Jim

Myers, and for the deep guidance on the theoretical framework and structure

of the research design provided by Janice Jiggins. Overall these sections of

the research would not have been possible without the work of such valuable

organizations as Organic Seed Alliance, Organic Trade Association and the

organic sub-committees of the American and Mexican Seed Trade Associations.

For support in understanding the genotype selection and providing select elite

inbred lines for the study, I wish to thank Dr. Mark Farnham from the USDA,

Charleston, South Carolina. For the ield component of this research, I wish

to thank the organic growers Jolene Jebbia and John Eveland at Gathering

Together Farm in Philomath, Oregon, for providing the location and support

for the organic broccoli trials. I deeply appreciated the eforts of Deborah Kean,

Faculty Research Assistant at the Oregon State University Research Station, and

students Hank Keogh, Shawna Zimmerman, Miles Barrett, and Jennifer Fielder