Future For Seed Exports ‘Clouded*

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31399, 19 June 1967, Page 19

Future For Seed Exports ‘Clouded*

The future of New Zealand’s seed markets in Europe is clouded by increasing regulation of seed imports by individual countries, and by the impending introduction of an over-all seed import policy by the European Economic Community. This impression was gained by Dr. L. Corkill, Director of the Grasslands Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research and former director of the Crop Research Division at Lincoln, during a two-month visit to Europe.

Dr. Corkill said several New Zealand pasture varieties could fill a useful place in European agriculture. But there could be no future market in Europe for seed of these varieties unless they were first tested, approved and registered according to European requirements. At present, several European countries had varietal registration schemes, and Dr. Corkill investigated these schemes in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and West Germany. Several of the Grasslands Division’s pasture varieties are currently being tested in France. Manawa (short-rota-tion) ryegrass has already been approved and registered in France, and Dr. Corkill found that it was so highly regarded there that it was being used as the standard for comparison of perfromance in trial plots. On the basis of the trials now in progress, it seemed probable that Paroa, the Grasslands variety of Italian ryegrass, would be approved and registered before the end of this year, said Dr. Corkill. Other French trials of Grasslands perennial ryegrass, white clover and broad red clover were going quite well, but were still in their early stages. It would be a year or two before it was known whether these varieties were approved for registration. Acceptability to France, however, would probably not be sufficient to ensure acceptability under the scheme the E.E.C. was planning to introduce in two or three years’ time. It was probable that, to gain registration under the E.E.C. scheme, varieties would have to be tested and approved in two E.E.C. countries. Accordingly, the Grasslands Division was taking immediate steps to have its herbage varieties

tested in Belgium, too, and would apply for their registration there. Approval Required Another requirement will be to obtain E.E.C. approval of the New Zealand seed certification system. The E.E.C. will send a technical officer to examine the New Zealand scheme and report on it. Dr. Corkill foresees no problem in this direction, because the New Zealand certification scheme sets as high a standard as ahy in the world. In Paris, Dr. Corkill represented New Zealand at the annual meeting of technical representatives of the 25 countries participating in the international seed certification scheme run by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

One feature of the O.E.C.D. scheme he considers may be economically important to New Zealand is that it provides a mechanism for the growing, for re-export, of seed of varieties originating in other countries. "At present,” said Dr. Corkill, “the United States, Canada and Denmark are producing large quantities of seed under this scheme. It is probable that the New Zealand seed-growing industry could benefit from this sort of reciprocal arrangement, by growing seed for other O.E.CiD. countries which have good varieties but which, for climatic or other reasons, are not particularly well suited for seed production. "New Zealand has already done some growing of overseas varieties for re-export Mt a minor- scale. Working under the O.E.C.D. scheme, we might "well think about larger-scali! undertakings of the same, sort in future.”