Page 98 - Breeding and regulatory opportunities, Renaud

Chapter 3

Further complications have arisen. The imported seed must be accompanied by

an organic certiicate issued by a certiication agency recognized by Mexico’s

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food

(SAGARPA) (Sonnabend, 2010), as outlined in the Organic Products Law of 2010

(COFEMER, 2010). In addition, imported seed is subject to the phytosanitary

requirements outlined in Mexico’s Federal Phytosanitary Law (NOM-006-

FITO-1995), that requires imported seed to be treated with a particular chemical

seed treatment. Because such treatments are not permissible in organic systems,

an alternative treatment has been proposed that complies with the letter and

intention of Mexico’s Federal Phytosanitary Law. However, the treatment is

consistent neither with the phytosanitary requirements of Mexico’s primary

organic trading partners, nor proven efective as a blanket phytosanitary control

for all crops or all diseases.

Considering the severity of restrictions placed on the Mexican organic sector

by foreign organic seed regulations and the phytosanitary restrictions on

seed importation, stakeholders have been encouraged to seek other ways

forward. Exception grants from SAGARPA are available for growers who

solicit a grower-speciic importation permit, thus allowing them to import

seed directly and avoid a seed distributor, and to work directly with the

authorities to authenticate potential phytosanitary risks. This has resulted in

inconsistent certiication standards with respect to enforcement of the seed

importation process. Mexican growers are also importing seed from their own

supplier networks, encouraging use of seed that is not certiied organic and

of conventional seed treated chemically (that might or might not be washed

of). Moreover, organic growers continue to receive exception to the seed

rule even when organic seed is available. The testing of imported seed for

acceptability also has numerous loopholes. For instance, inspectors might or

might not divulge the test criteria, and might or might not choose to exercise

their discretionary authority to label a seed lot as unacceptable (thus requiring

that it be sent back to the country of origin at the grower’s expense, or be

surrendered to the inspector for destruction) (Dunkle, 2011). However, and

even more signiicantly, industry stakeholders report the growing practice

of furtive acquisition of conventional seed (for organic purposes) that might

or might not be treated in accordance with phytosanitary requirements,

resulting in the growing illegal movement of seed into and around Mexico.

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