ISF Signs Agreement to Fight Illegal Seed Practices

At the recent World Seed Congress in the Netherlands, the International Seed Federation (ISF) signed what is being hailed as an ‘historic agreement’ with 12 organisations to combat illegal seed practices.

The organisations include seed trade associations from Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and the Americas, together with plant breeders, the Anti-Infringement Bureau for Intellectual Property Rights on Plant Material, CropLife International, and the Seed Innovation Protection Alliance.

Illegal seed practices cover a range of activities like counterfeit seeds, fraudulent labelling and seed certificates, intellectual property infringements, regulatory offences, trademark infringements, and theft of proprietary material.

According to a recent survey conducted by ISF, illegal seed practices are widespread in many countries, affecting numerous crops, value chain actors and even consumers. Depending on the crops and geographies, illegal seeds may account for up to 50% of the market and have devastating consequences for farmers, who face severe crop failures and economic losses.