8 GERMINATION.CA JANUARY 2018 is the number of global indicators proposed by the United Nations Inter-Agency and Expert Group on SDG indicators in its 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. According to Robynne Anderson, president of consulting firm Emerging Ag, “the best thing the seed sector can do is hop onboard that. Many of [the indicators] relate to things the industry is already involved in, like water use footprint. The seed industry needs to think of some key goals aligned with that international agenda, and then speak to consumers about that.” was the year the Seed Synergy group first got together to talk about building a next-generation seed system for Canada. According to Dave Carey, executive director of the Canadian Seed Trade Association, much progress has been made in that time when it comes to creating a new vision for Canada’s seed sector. “You always look in the rear view when you do anything, but I think we need to challenge ourselves to think along the lines of if we had nothing, how would we build it today.” is the number of years the International Plant Protection Convention worked to develop its new phytosanitary standard, adopted in 2017. “The International Seed Federation greatly welcomes the agreement as a significant step toward harmonized phytosanitary measures that will facilitate the international movement of seed,” says Michael Keller, secretary-general of ISF. “This is essential for the development of new plant varieties, and the availability of pest-free, high-quality seed, which is a major pre-condition of global food security.” is the number of active ingredients in BASF’s Insure Pulse fungicide seed treatment, designed for use on pulses and flax and recently introduced for use on soybean as well. According to Julia Harnal, BASF Canada’s marketing manager crop protection, the product’s use on flax is an example of thinking outside the box when it comes to formulation. “It’s not just about the efficiency of chemical ingredients, but how we formulate them and how we get our formulators to understand that this is going on a flax seed, and [can they figure out] why it’s so tough for growers to apply chemistry to such a tiny seed.” is the current membership of the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association. CSGA president Kevin Runnalls says he’s encouraged by the enthusiasm he’s seen from members in regards to the association’s recent initiatives to modernize the CSGA and the Canadian seed sector in general. “The encouragement I get from the rest of the [membership] gives me confidence that we’re on the right track, that we should keep going and not let up on the gas.” GIANT NUMBERS What figures do this year’s giants have on their minds? 2015 230 18 3 3,500