Page 93 - Breeding and regulatory opportunities, Renaud

Seed Regulation in the US, EU and Mexico

report of the exceptions granted in the member state. The timeline for the

chronology of events in the EU case is outlined in Table 3.4.

The European Seed Association (ESA) in 2002 carried out an assessment of seed

companies’capacity to deliver the requisite quantities of organic seed by the end

of the following year, concluding that it should be possible for seed companies

to do so. However, the assessment also showed that despite overall availability,

and in the quantities required, organic growers of particular crops in certain

regions would in fact not be able to access all of their seed requirements in

organic form by the deadline. Thus the regulation was amended again to allow

exceptions on request so that growers could use conventional seed provided

the seed was not chemically treated and organic seed was not available. The

perspective of diferent seed company stakeholder types on the potential for

achieving 100% organic seed is outlined in Table 3.3. Most member states base

exceptions on the following categories: (1) no exception for species and sub-

species with enough acceptable assortment of varieties available in organic form,

(2) case-by-case authorization for exceptions for those species and sub-species

with some varieties available in organic form but not a suicient assortment

of the main varieties required in the organic sector, (3) general exception for

species and sub-species without any (appropriate) varieties available in organic

form (Thommen et al. 2007).

Several member states have supported regulatory implementation by

developing tools for database development, communicating availability criteria,

and encouraging closure to exceptions for certain crop groups (Thommen et

al. 2007, Lammerts van Bueren et al., 2008, Döring et al., 2012). Some member

states, such as The Netherlands and Denmark, use formalized expert groups

to identify which species and (sub) species are allocated to each of the

above-noted exception categories. Expert group advice in these countries, in

combination with approval by their respective Ministries of Agriculture, informs

exception approval or disapproval by the member state’s certiication body.

The composition of expert groups, and the method of analysis used to evaluate

exceptions, is unique to each member state. For example, some member states

allow grower representatives to participate in expert groups together with

seed producers and advisors. Others do not, believing growers may inluence

exception allowances in their favour. Still others, including Germany and

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