Details of the formal recognition of EU member states, Switzerland and EEA countries as equivalent in the production of seed and other propagating material and the maintenance of varieties.
Variety registration requirements must be met before material can be marketed in Great Britain.
Authorisation for the marketing of seed and other propagating material produced in an EU member states, Switzerland and EEA countries into Great Britain from 1 January 2021
Seed of beet, cereals, fodder plants, oil and fibre and vegetables
Authorisation for the marketing of seed of beet, cereals, fodder plants, oil and fibre and vegetables produced in the countries listed in Table 1, and where that country is a member of the relevant OECD Seed Scheme, is granted in England, Wales and Scotland. Field inspection of seed producing crops and certification of seed must meet the requirements of the relevant OECD Seed Scheme for the Varietal Certification of Seed moving in International Trade. Field inspection and seed production in those countries is carried out under conditions considered equivalent to the following relevant legislation.
England
Seed Marketing Regulations 2011
Wales
Seed Marketing (Wales) Regulations 2012
Scotland
Vegetable Seeds Regulations 1993
Oil and Fibre Plant Seed (Scotland) Regulations 2004
Cereal Seed (Scotland) Regulations 2005
Fodder Plant Seed (Scotland) Regulations 2005
Beet Seed (Scotland) (No. 2) Regulations 2010
Seed should meet the conditions described in the relevant legislation (other than those relating to varietal identity and purity). Examination of seed to check that these conditions have been met shall be carried out officially or under official supervision in accordance with ISTA Rules. For the purpose of the examination, samples shall be taken officially or under official supervision in accordance with ISTA Rules, and their weights shall conform to the weight stipulated under such methods, considering the weights specified in the relevant legislation.
Seed lots shall be accompanied by an ISTA Orange International Seed Lot Certificate.
Further guidance on the conditions to be met will be issued in due course.
Seed potatoes
Seed potato production and certification carried out in EU member states, Switzerland or EEA countries is not currently recognised as equivalent to the requirements of GB legislation. Therefore, no authorisations for the marketing of seed potatoes in GB are currently granted for seed potatoes produced in those countries.
Vegetable plant material
Authorisation for the marketing of vegetable plant material produced in the countries, as indicated in Table 1, is granted in England, Wales and Scotland. Production is carried out under conditions considered equivalent to the requirements in the following legislation, in those countries. The marketing of vegetable plant material will be acceptable under the labelling requirements of the country producing it.
England
The Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations 1995
Wales
The Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations 1995
Scotland
The Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations 1995
Fruit plant and propagating material
Authorisation for the marketing of fruit plant and propagating material produced in the countries, as indicated in Table 1, is granted in England, Wales and Scotland. Production and certification (where it applies) is carried out under conditions considered equivalent to the requirements in the following legislation, in those countries. The marketing of fruit plant and propagating material will be acceptable under the labelling requirements of the country producing it.
England
The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material (England) Regulations 2017
Wales
The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material (Wales) Regulations 2017
Scotland
The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material (Scotland) Regulations 2017
Forest Reproductive Material
Authorisation for the marketing of forest reproductive material produced in the European Union countries listed in Table 2, that are members of the OECD Scheme for the certification of forest reproductive material moving in international trade, is granted in England, Wales and Scotland in compliance with the following legislation.
Authorisation for the marketing of forest reproductive material produced in the countries listed in Table 3, that are members of the OECD Scheme for the certification of forest reproductive material moving in international trade and are already recognised as equivalent by the European Union, is granted to allow the continued marketing of forest reproductive material in England, Wales and Scotland in compliance with the following legislation, from those countries.
Great Britain
The Forest Reproductive Material (Great Britain) Regulations 2002
Maintenance of varieties
For species covered by the Seeds (National List of Varieties) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/3510), the official checks on the maintenance of varieties carried out by countries, as indicated in table 1, are assessed as affording the same guarantees as those under the National List regulations. This means that pre-basic and basic seed produced in these countries may be used for further seed production in England, Wales and Scotland.
Period of Validity
This authorisation is valid until 31st December 2029, except for seed potatoes where recognition for marketing into England and Wales ceased on 30 June 2021.
Right to Audit
Defra, Scottish Government and Welsh Government reserve the right to audit recognised countries if there are issues with quality.
Table 1 EU member states, Switzerland and EEA countries meeting requirements for equivalence for seed of beet, cereals, fodder plants, oil and fibre and vegetables, based on OECD membership, and seed potatoes, including for variety maintenance, and for vegetable plant material and fruit plant and propagating material.
Maintenance of Varieties: For species covered by the Seeds (National List of Varieties) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/3510), the official checks on the maintenance of varieties carried out by the countries indicated below are assessed as affording the same guarantees as those under the National List regulations.
OECD Seed Schemes for the Varietal Certification of Seed moving in International Trade
|
Country |
Certifying Authority |
Grasses and Legumes |
Crucifers and other oil and fibre species |
Cereals |
Beet |
Maize |
Vegetables |
Vegetable plant material |
Fruit and plant propagating material |
|
Austria |
Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety, Vienna |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
Belgium |
Ministere de la Region de Bruxelles-Capitale Administration de l’Economie et de l’Emploi Cellule Agriculture, Bruxelles
Vlaamse Overheid Agentschap voor Landbouw en Visserij Productkwaliteitsbeheer Ellips, Brussels
Service Public de Wallonie Direction Générale Operationnelle Agriculture, Ressources Naturelles et Environnement Département du Développement, Namur |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
Bulgaria |
Executive Agency for Variety Testing, Field Inspection and Seed Control, Sofia |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Croatia |
Croatian Agency for Agriculture and Food - Center for Seed and Seedlings, Osijek |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Cyprus |
Department of Agriculture Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development & Environment, Nicosi |
x |
x |
|
|
|
x |
x |
x |
|
Czech Republic |
Central Institute for Supervising & Testing in Agriculture Seed and Planting Materials Division, Prah |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Denmark |
Ministry of Environment and Food The Danish Agricultural Agency, Copenhagen |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Estonia |
Agricultural Board, Saku |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Finland |
Finnish Food Authority, Loima |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
France |
Service officiel de contrôle et de certification des semences et plants (SOC), 44 rue du Louvre 75001 PARIS |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Germany |
Bundessortenamt, Hannover |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Greece |
Ministry of Rural Development & Food Directorate General of Sustainable Plant Production Directorate of Plant Genetic Resources and Propagating Material of Cultivated Plant Species Department A1 (Department of Propagating Material of Agricultural Crops, Vegetables, Ornamentals, Aromatic and Pharmaceutical Plants), Athen |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Hungary |
National Food Chain Safety Office (NEBIH) Department of Seed Certification, Budapest |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Ireland |
Crop Policy, Evaluation and Certification Division, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Kildar |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
|
x |
x |
|
Italy |
CREA-DC, Milan |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
X |
|
Lativa |
State Plant Protection Service Seed Control Department, Rig |
x |
|
x |
|
|
|
x |
X |
|
Lithuania |
State Plant Service Ministry of Agriculture, Vilnius |
x |
x |
x |
|
|
|
x |
X |
|
Luxembourg |
Ministère de l'Agriculture, de la Viticulture et du Développement Rural, Luxembourg |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
x |
|
Malta |
Seed and other Propagation Material Unit (SPMU), Plant Health Directorate, Ministry for Sustainable Development, the Environment and Climate Change, Lija |
|
|
|
|
|
x |
x |
x |
|
Netherlands |
Nederlandse Algemene Keuringdienst (NAK), Emmeloord |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Poland |
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Division of Plant Breeding and Seeds, Warsaw |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Portugal |
Direção Geral de Alimentação e Veterinária (DGAV), Lisboa |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Romania |
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development National Inspection for Quality of Seeds, Bucharestx |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Slovakia |
The Central Control and Testing Institute in Agriculture in Bratislava (ÚKSÚP), Bratislava |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Slovenia |
Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Food Safety, Veterinary Sector and Plant Protection, Ljubljan |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
Spain |
Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación - Oficina Española de Variedades Vegetales (OEVV), Madrid |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
|
Sweden |
Swedish Board of Agriculture Seed, Svalov |
x |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
x |
x |
|
EEA or others |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Iceland |
Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority, Selfoss |
x |
x |
x |
|
|
x |
|
|
|
Norway |
The Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet), Brumunddal |
x |
x |
x |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Switzerland |
Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research EAER Federal Office for Agriculture FOAG Plant Health and Varieties Unit, Bern |
x |
x |
x |
|
x |
|
|
|
Table 2: Countries meeting requirements for equivalence for Forest Reproductive Material based on OECD membership of the OECD Forest Scheme
|
Country |
Certifying Authority |
|
Austria |
Federal Forest Office, Forest Reproductive Material, Vienna |
|
Belgium |
Bruxelles Environnoment – IBGE, Division Qualité de l'Environnement et Gestion de la Nature, Département Forêt, Bruxelles Vlaamse Overheid, Departement Landbouw en Visserij, Afdeling Voorlichting, Doelgroepenbeleid en Kwaliteit Plant Dienst Kwaliteit Plant Ellips, Brussel Service Public de Wallonie, Agriculture, Ressources Naturelles et Environnoment, Département du développement, de la ruralité et des cours d’eau et du bien-être animal, Namur |
|
Bulgaria |
Executive Forest Agency, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forest, Sofia |
|
Croatia |
Croatian Forest Research Institute – CFI, Division of Genetics, Forest Tree Breeding and Seed Husbandry, Jastrebarsko Ministry of Agriculture, Directorate for Forestry, Hunting and Wood Industry, Sector for Forestry, Zagreb |
|
Denmark |
Ministry of Environment and Food, Danish Agricultural Agency, København |
|
Finland |
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Natural Resources Department, Forests and Bionenergy Unit, Helsinki |
|
France |
Ministère de l'agriculture et de l'alimentation, DGPE/SDFE - Sous-direction des filières forêt-bois, cheval et bioéconomie, Bureau Gestion durable de la forêt et du bois, Paris |
|
Germany |
Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries Institute of Forest Genetics, Grosshansdorf |
|
Hungary |
ional Food Chain Safety Office, Directorate for Plant Production and Horticulture, Budapest |
|
Ireland |
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Dublin |
|
Italy |
Ministry of agricultural, food and forestry policies, General direction of forests, Rome |
|
Netherlands |
Naktuinbouw, ROELOFARENDSVEEN |
|
Portugal |
Ministério da Agricultura, Florestas e Desenvolvimento Rural, Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas, I.P., Lisboa |
|
Romania |
“Marin Dracea” National Institute for Research and Development in Forestry, (INCDS “Marin Dracea”), Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding Department, Romania |
|
Slovakia |
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Section of Forestry and Wood Processing, Bratislava National Forest Centre, Zvolen |
|
Spain |
Deputy Directorate General for Forest Policy, Directorate General of Rural, Development, Innovation and Forest Policy, MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD, Madrid
Spanish Plant Variety Office, General Directorate of Productions and Agricultural markets. MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND ENVIRONMENT, Madrid |
|
Sweden |
Swedish Forest Agency, BORÅS |
Table 3 Countries continuing to meet requirements for equivalence for Forest Reproductive Material based on OECD membership of the OECD Forest Scheme
|
Country |
Certifying Authority |
|
Canada |
Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forestry Service, Fredericto |
|
Norway |
Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Aas Norwegian Forest Seed Center, Hamar |
|
Serbia |
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, Directorate for Forest, Novi Beograd |
|
Switzerland |
Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC), Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), Forest Division, Birmensdorf |
|
Turkey |
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, General Directorate of Forestry, Forest Tree Seeds and Tree Breeding Research Institute Directorate, Ankara |
|
United States |
Washington State Crop Improvement Association, Inc. (Official State Certification Authorities - Authorized to issue OECD certificates through cooperative agreement with USDA Forest Service), Washington |