October 5, 2022

A Message from President Dale Connell

At the AGM in July, it was an honour for me to accept the gavel from our Past President, Joe Rennick, and step into the role as your CSGA President. I stand as your President with lifelong experience in seed, from the family business I grew up with to my family’s current seed growing business near Palmerston, Ontario, growing oats, barley, wheat, and soybeans. I am a CSGA-Accredited Plot Grower and proudly hold my 20-year Long Service Award.

Throughout my time with CSGA, I’ve learned that the Association is made up of people like myself who want to step up to better the business of seed and provide a solid system for the future generation of producers. I aim to be a calm and mediating voice focused on collaborating and encouraging a diversity of voices at the table; we will strengthen CSGA and the seed sector as a whole.

I want to focus on CSGA supporting current and next generation seed growers with training and development opportunities. Increased seed certification knowledge and skills support our growers’ success. 

My tenure will certainly be centered on Seed Regulatory Modernization (SRM). We must ensure the process continues and that our SRM policy positions are understood so that we end up with something that will work for us over the future decades. I think the months and years ahead will be good for Canadian seed. I’m happy to focus my presidency on helping lead CSGA and the entire seed sector to a place of success.

I wish you all a successful and prosperous harvest!

Circular 6 Consultation on Proposed Changes

CSGA is committed to providing an agile and comprehensive national seed crop certification system that responds to member, crop production, and agri-food sector needs. Part of that commitment is working closely with stakeholders to bring improvements to the regulatory system, including the Canadian Regulations and Procedures for Pedigreed Seed Crop Production, Circular 6.

Circular 6 sets out the requirements that a seed grower and a seed crop must meet for seed crop certification. This year the Regulatory Services Committee (RSC) is recommending several revisions to Circular 6, based on input from the Forage and Turf, Pulse, and Soybean working groups, for consultation and before a final recommendation is presented to the Board of Directors.

Consultation is now open to members and stakeholders for feedback on these proposed revisions until Monday, November 7, 2022.

Proposed Changes to Circular 6

The RSC has recommended changes to the isolation requirements and standards for the mechanical purity of pulse, soybean, and forage and turf seed crops producing Foundation, Registered and Certified status seed.

The proposed changes address concerns that these crop kinds do not require isolation from other crop kinds, especially when the other kind is permitted within the crop. Also, seeds from plants of other crop kinds found during inspection can be removed during seed processing with modern seed cleaning equipment.

Pulses and Soybeans

1. Remove the mechanical purity isolation requirement for Foundation, Registered and Certified production of pulses and soybeans.
2. No longer require plant counts for mechanical purity for Foundation, Registered and Certified production of pulses and soybeans where there is no maximum impurity standard.

 Forage and Turf

1. Remove the mechanical purity isolation requirement for forage and turf species.
2. With respect to the maximum impurity standards within seed crops of forage and turf species, the RSC is seeking your feedback on the options below:
   1. Have inspectors report other kinds by frequency (e.g., numerous, few, trace as they do for weeds), but do not make it part of the certification decision
      • i.e., when inspectors report other kinds, CSGA would put ‘warnings’ on crop certificates for the grader to be aware that the other kind was present in the field, but CSGA would not demote or decline the field based on the presence of other crop kinds, or
   2. No longer report other crop kinds in forage and turf species
      • i.e., no longer have maximum impurity standards for other crop kinds (e.g., a wheatgrass field would not be demoted or declined due to the presence of ryegrass).
      • Some exceptions may be necessary where the two kinds cannot be distinguished in a lab test (e.g., annual ryegrass in perennial ryegrass).

As is current practice, if the other kind(s) were present at ‘very weedy’ levels (the other crop(s) cover the seed crop preventing the inspector from doing their counts for varietal purity), the field would be declined in either option.

Additional detailed information on the proposed changes can be found here.

How to Participate

Your input on proposed Circular 6 changes helps maintain an agile and up-to-date seed crop certification system. You are invited to provide feedback on the proposed changes directly by email or by calling 613-236-0497, ext. 227. The consultation period is open until Monday, November 7, 2022.

The RSC will present its final recommendation to the Board of Directors later this fall. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Finalize Your Digital Seed Crop Certificates in SeedCert

Growers and Assignees are reminded to please complete their digital seed crop certificates and settle their accounts. Log in to SeedCert and review your account to see what may be outstanding. The resource section on SeedCert’s home page includes a “How To” video and a PDF guide to help guide you through the process.

If you need assistance, please email us or call 613-236-0497 ext. 8803.

Tell Us How We Are Doing

We want to hear from you! Don’t forget to take three minutes to participate in the CSGA Satisfaction Survey. Your feedback will help us strengthen the services we provide. The survey is open until October 28, 2022. We appreciate your help.

Save the Date for St. John's, NL!

We’re finally going to see you again! That’s right; the 2023 CSGA Annual General Meeting will take place in person at the Sheraton hotel in beautiful St. John’s, Newfoundland, July 9 and 10, 2023!

Mark your calendars and stay tuned for more information.