Seeds and cuttings are dealt with through the European Green Deal’s farm-to-fork strategies, which underpin its aim to make food systems more equitable, healthy and more environmentally-friendly, according to Luxembourg Times.
European Parliament documents state that seeds and other plant reproductive material “are central to achieving a more sustainable, productive and diversified EU agriculture in support of the EU objective to become the first climate-neutral continent.”
However, the project to replace these ten directives with a single regulation is at an early stage and the seeds of the proposal have not yet sprouted into law, yet some questions are already being raised. On the other hand, critics have raised concerns that artisanal seed producers and small-scale subsistence farmers will be the biggest losers from the proposed changes.
Blanche Magarinos-Rey, a legal expert on EU seed marketing legislation, emphasised that common terms such as sustainability and marketing need to be better defined to avoid misuse or misinterpretation in the agricultural context.
In addition, if only certain categories require labelling of GMO and modified seeds, then certifying these seeds under the umbrella of “sustainability” would ensure their anonymity. This would be a blatant disregard and breach of consumer legislation, which could also mean that internal testing of GMO seeds is conducted outside the control of an independent expert body, she warned, saying it would be unfair and unreliable.
There is also an issue that concerns small farmers. For example, Luxembourg-based artisanal seed producer and co-founder of the local Seed network Frank Adams also has some difficulties and concerns. His specialisation in local and heirloom seed varieties is supported by Luxembourg’s agricultural policy, but Adams is not allowed to sell seeds on the open market because, he argues, the quality of his seeds is assessed by long-established industrial markers that are usually applied to monoculture crops, rather than taking into account traditional biodiverse plant sources. As a consequence, the administrative burden of seed testing and registration is already too high for small-scale producers.
However, as transformative as the farm-to-fork strategy may be, a number of its proposals are on life support. If the Sustainable Food Systems Act and animal welfare proposals remain unrealised, it is hard to expect the current seed marketing proposal to hit the table in time for the European elections in June 2024.
