Regulations and Rights in

1
Regulations and Rights in National Seed System
Development Robert Tripp Overseas
Development Institute
2

• How can seed policy foster the growth of
  competitive seed markets, offering farmers a wide
  range of high quality products that contribute to
  agricultural growth?
• What are the roles of the state, industry and
  farmers in developing systems of regulations and
  rights to support seed system development?

3

• This presentation
• Regulation
• (Property rights)
• The actors in seed regulation
• Regulatory dilemmas
• Variety approval
• Seed quality control
• Conclusions

4
Regulations

• Regulations address market failures
• Providing farmers with information about seeds
  and varieties
• Controlling negative externalities (e.g. pests
  and diseases)
• Strengthening markets should lower the need for
  state intervention in regulation

5
Regulations

• Too little regulation Poor quality seed,
  misrepresentation, low farmer confidence
• Too much regulation Few companies in market, few
  seed products, farmers cant take advantage of
  new varieties

6
Intellectual Property Rights for Plant Varieties

• Intellectual property rights are granted by
  society as an incentive for innovation.
• They are private rights which will be maintained
  for a limited time and then the innovation will
  enter the public domain.

7
Intellectual Property Rights for Plant Varieties

• Too few rights Low investment in plant breeding,
  copying and imitation, loss of commercial markets
• Too many rights Industry concentration,
  technology controlled by few firms, farmers
  subject to policing

8
Comparing Regulations and Rights
9
Regulation The Actors
Regulator
Guidance
Companies
10
Regulation The Actors
Regulator
Guidance
Quality Control
Companies
11
Regulation The Actors
Regulator
Guidance
Quality Control
Companies
Farmers
Reputation
Consumer Rights
12
Regulation The Actors
Regulator
Education
Guidance
Quality Control
Requirements
Companies
Farmers
Reputation
Consumer Rights
13
Some regulatory dilemmas

• Varieties
• Testing
• Standards
• Rights and registration
• The role of the seed industry
• Harmonization
• Seed
• Regulation versus reputation
• Consumer education
• Matching regulation to capacity
• The role of the seed industry
• Seed saving

14
Do varieties have to be tested?

• Not all countries require variety testing
• Until recently, private varieties in India could
  be sold without performance testing
• Escapes varieties promoted by farmers

15
If varieties are tested, what standards should be
used?

• Ensuring test conditions are appropriate
• Do you test varieties under optimum management if
  this does not represent farmers conditions?
• Results of participatory plant breeding
• In barley trials in Syria, breeders more
  efficient at selection in high rainfall
  conditions farmers more efficient at selection
  under stress conditions (Ceccarelli et al)

16
What is the relation between variety registration
and property rights?

• Early US industry suspicion of plant breeders
  rights.
• India. New seed law (to be compatible with plant
  breeders rights law) now requires performance
  trials.

17
What is the role of the seed industry in variety
testing?

• US. Voluntary testing (but National Variety
  Review Boards).
• East Africa. Variety release streamlined and
  committee utilizes data supplied by breeder or
  company.

18
What are the prospects for regional harmonization
for variety registration?

• EU. The common catalogue and applications for PVP
• Southern Africa. SADC proposal for regional
  variety release.
• East Africa. Acceptance of test data from other
  countries in region.

19
Is certification necessary? Regulation versus
reputation
Percent sub-standard seed in tested samples,
Andhra Pradesh, 1998-2001
Source AP Seedsmen Association
20
What is the role of consumer education and
consumer protection?

• Where do most problems with seed quality occur,
  in the processing plant or at the point of sale?
• Pearl millet farmers in Rajasthan
• Can name the company supplying seed 58
• Cant name company or variety 24
• Recognize a difference between certification
• tag and truthful label 10
• Farmers who can explain certification 0

21
How can you match a regulatory system with
available resources?

• If certification agency has inadequate resources
• - Seed does not reach market
• - Company pays agency expenses (improper
  relationship)
• - Agency cuts corners, leading to low quality
  seed
• Need an appropriate system that
• - sets reasonable standards
• - monitors
• - enforces
• - (e.g. Quality Declared Seed system)

22
What is the role of the seed industry in seed
certification?

• Accrediting companies to do certification
• Industry co-ordination. SANSOR (South Africa)
• Private certification (USA)

23
Is seed saving a problem?
Farmers' Sources of Wheat Seed. Punjab (India)
and Kansas (US)
Sources Sidhu et al Stanelle et al.
24
Winter Wheat Seed, USA, 1987/88
Sig lt 5 Source Knudson and Hansen
25
Conclusions

• Regulation needs to find a balance. It is
  possible to under-regulate and to over-regulate.
• There are no optimal or best regulatory
  solutions, just solutions that respond better
  than othersat a particular moment in history
  (Ayres and Braithwaite)
• Regulatory systems (and IPR systems) evolve with
  the economy, and with changes in information and
  incentives.
• Regulation costs money it is important to find
  ways to share responsibilities and develop
  regional collaboration.
• Seed regulation is not solely a state function
  it must be balanced by the actions of companies
  and farmers.