Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60Alternative Service Delivery. Seed growers are paying 100 per cent of the cost of a field inspection now,” Scheffel adds. Part of the resolution, Scheffel notes, is to also look at sim- plifying the language in Circular 6. When standards and procedures are complicated and hard to understand, and farmers don’t get their crops certified because of a misun- derstanding — or it takes the inspector an extra half-hour in the field to complete an inspection report — it all ends up costing time and money. “We’re looking to simplify it in some ways in regards to standards and procedures, but also in the way the informa- tion is presented. Eventually we’d like to go to an electronic document that has hyper-links and makes use of the digital format to create an easier to use, easier to look at, better document, overall,” Scheffel says. Klym hopes the changes will be implemented for 2017, but Scheffel adds those changes will have to be made carefully to ensure standards are maintained. “We need to go through a proper process and make sure our standards committee has a good discussion on what’s being proposed and what some of the unintended con- sequences could be,” Scheffel says. “We’re going to be looking at a multi-phase approach.” Beginning the Cannabis Discussion Reuben Stone grows hemp seed in Renfrew County, Ont., as the owner of Stone Farms. He was at the CSGA meeting in July, and was successful in having a motion passed that could be one of the most significant in recent history, if it comes to fruition. Stone proposed a resolution that CSGA create standards by which all cannabis can be certified. Currently, CSGA only has standards for industrial hemp. The Liberal government has announced that it plans to legalize marijuana in 2017. Although nothing has been announced in terms of what exactly that will look like, Stone says there will be opportunities for the seed industry on the horizon, and CSGA needs to be a leader in what he says will be an important industry. “There’s going to be more potential for harvesting for dif- ferent products other than just grain and fibre, and we’ll need different germplasm to capitalize on that,” Stone says. “Cannabinoid production in industrial hemp is a big oppor- tunity, and that will require some different mechanisms.” Scheffel says the resolution spearheaded by Stone wasn’t a surprise to CSGA staff, as the issue has been talked about for some time now. “We’ve been talking in the office about our potential role when it comes to the legalization of marijuana and what we might be able to do in that area when it comes to tracking and traceability,” he says. Scheffel doesn’t foresee marijuana seed production hap- pening in the field. If and when the federal government legalizes high-THC cannabis, he says CSGA’s role could potentially be in the tracking of seed lots. CSGA is currently not involved in the medical marijuana industry, but Stone says that could change, in his opinion. He explains that a major crossover between the industrial hemp and medical cannabis industries is on the horizon if and when marijuana is legalized in 2017. He notes that not all medical cannabis is necessarily high in tetrahydrocan- nabinol, or THC, the active ingredient in marijuana that causes psychoactive effects. “There are other compounds in the plant that are impor- tant,” he says. “The medical marijuana industry has the same issues hemp seed growers deal with as far as seed goes — plant breeders rights, transfer of seed stock, that kind of thing. All of that is important to them, but they don’t have the mechanisms to take action right now. CSGA could play an important role in that. It’s not just about fibre anymore.” But there are still a lot of unknowns, Scheffel notes. “Until we know what the regulatory regime looks like, we’re not totally sure if there’s a role here for CSGA,” he says. For 32-year-old Stone, it’s about Canadian seed growers being able to get in on the ground floor and capitalize on opportunities they might miss if the industry isn’t prepared. “At Stone Farms, we got into seed because of hemp — that’s where a lot of our opportunities have manifested. If I came up with a breeding program for soybeans, I’d be up against some strong competition. Hemp has allowed us to really participate in the seed industry,” he says. “We need to talk about this and be ready. When we start to look at these other opportunities, if Canada doesn’t get its act together around this, we’ll lose our leadership posi- tion. There’s a lot of other countries that will surpass us in a hurry.” Marc Zienkiewicz 44