The Rural Voice, 2019-01, Page 8National Farmers Union – Ontario NEWSLETTER
Strong Communities.
Sound Policies.
Sustainable Farms.
Phone: 1-888-832-9638
E-mail: office@nfuontario.ca
Website: www.nfuontario.ca
Whose seed?
4 The Rural Voice
Seed Synergy, the corporate seed
industry lobby group, is pushing the
federal government for new
regulations under the Plant Breeders
Rights (PBR) Act that would make
farmers pay royalties on seed every
year even when we use farm-saved
seed (FSS). If successful, the seed
corporations expect to collect over
$100 million dollars more from
farmers annually.
In late 2018 AAFC consulted on
two approaches to collecting FSS
royalties. An End Point Royalty
system would charge a per-tonne
royalty on crops harvested from FSS.
Trailing Contracts would require
farmers who buy certified seed to pay
an annual royalty on their future use
FSS from the variety. The FSS
royalties would be paid to the
company and apply to varieties
registered since February 2014 when
Canada’s PBR Act was amended to
conform to UPOV ’91. FSS royalties
are planned for wheat first. Pulses
and other crops would be added later.
Payment of FSS royalties would be
enforced by the courts.
The National Farmers Union
opposes both End Point Royalties and
Trailing Contracts. Instead, we stand
for the inherent right of farmers —
derived from thousands of years of
custom and tradition—to save, reuse,
select, exchange, and sell seeds.
AFFC and the Seed Synergy
groups say FSS royalties are needed
to reward private investment in plant
breeding. In fact, FSS royalties are
designed to tighten corporate control
over seed. To achieve this, new
regulations would eliminate part or
all of the farmers’ privilege under the
PBR Act and make it so farmers
would need seed company
permission to legally plant FSS. The
company could say “yes, if you pay a
royalty” or “no, you must buy new
seed every year.” We have seen the
result of corporate control of seed in
patented GMO crops like corn and
canola: prices have shot up, and there
are fewer unpatented varieties
available.
Public plant breeding has served
Canada well. The return is estimated
at $11 for every dollar invested in
cereals breeding. This is an excellent
use of public funds! These returns
accrue to farmers, rural communities,
and the whole of the Canadian
economy. Farmers also invest in
plant breeding through check-off
organizations where elected farmers
decide how to spend research dollars,
directing funds to solve problems that
farmers prioritize. In contrast, seed
corporations are accountable only to
their shareholders. Only a small
portion of royalties goes to research,
the rest goes to advertising, lobbying,
and profits. Seed Synergy member
CropLife Canada, the lobby for
biotech and chemical companies, is
undoubtedly looking to package new
varieties with chemical inputs as a
way to increase their sales and
revenues.
Whose seed? Our seed!
The NFU is working hard to
oppose royalties on FSS. The latest
information is at
nfu.ca/campaigns/save-our-seed/
You can also talk to your neighbours
and friends about this, write letters to
the editor of your local and farm
papers, phone call-in shows, etc. If
you would like to get more involved
with the NFU’s seed campaign,
please email nfu@nfu.ca with “Seed
Sovereignty” in the subject line.
Renfrew County Local 330 – Next meeting is Monday, January 7,
7:30 p.m. at the Barr Line Community Centre. Everyone is welcome.
Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry, Ottawa, Prescott Russell Local 36
– Next meeting Thursday, January 17, 7:00 p.m. at the Riverbend
Restaurant, 3256 River Rd., Manotick. Everyone welcome.
Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox-Addington Local 316 – Our Annual
General Meeting will be held Thursday, January 10, 2019 at
Inverary United Church, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the
formation of the National Farmers Union in Canada, 1969-2019.
Coming Events
A subscription to The Rural Voice is one of the benefits of being an NFU-O member
New and young farmers can apply to Local 316 for funding to
attend conferences, workshops and other educational pursuits
related to farming or leadership. For more information contact:
Ian Stutt, Local 316 president, 613-483-0005 or ianstutt@gmail.com