b'Seed Testing Association). Royaltiesseed is carried out by DAFM. The scheme are collected by ISTA members at thecovers seed production and marketing for point of sale of CS. ISTA members makethe main agricultural crops. Crop species twice-annual returns to PVDO and theseinclude fodder plants, cereals, beet, pota-statistics are verified and signed bytoes, vegetables and oil and fibre plants. DAFM officials who visit ISTA membersThe scheme is partly funded through premises regularly, checking on seedthe collection of fees charged to seed production and sales statistics.assemblers and growers for services pro-ISTAs main role is representing itsvided by the DAFM. In the case of com-members interests with policymakers,binable crops, seed crops must be grown seed users and the general public. Whenunder a written contract which is drawn major changes occur such as Brexit, CAPup between the seed processor and the reform or market demands/challenges,grower. Each seed crop is inspected by ISTA will meet the relevant bodies toDAFM inspectors to confirm the identity represent its members interests. In theof the variety, to ensure that it meets past, ISTA has been successful in secur- the minimum level of varietal purity and ing a coupled Protein Crop payment forthat it meets certain plant health and Ireland, which doubled the area of beanspest infection standards. Extra voluntary grown in Ireland. standards are adhered to by ISTA mem-bers such as a zero tolerance for black PLANT BREEDING IN IRELAND grass and wild oats during the seed field Plant breeding of cereal crops began ininspections.Ireland in 1905 under state ownershipHybrid barley variety Bazooka. Source: Seedtech ISTA members multiply and market and was primarily concerned with malt- registered varieties as part of the DAFM ing barley and oat breeding but also hadseed certification scheme as C1 (blue some noticeable local success in springthis is proposed by the breeders agentlabel) seed. Small quantities of C2 (red milling wheat and faba beans. However,for entry into official trials. DAFM is thelabel) seed are imported periodically but when Ireland joined the EU (at the time,government department responsible forare viewed as inferior by Irish growers. the EEC) in 1973, international plantindependently testing new varieties forIssues such as grass weeds are often cited breeders could collect royalties andValue for Cultivation and Use (VCU) andas the biggest reason for grower apathy became increasingly interested in thelisting on the Irish National List and sub- toward imported C2 seed.Irish market.sequently on the Recommended Lists.Trained DAFM staff inspect each This marked the beginning of theVarieties are tested for a minimum ofseed crop in the field, take samples for end of cereal plant breeding in Ireland astwo years on DAFM research farms andtesting and conducting the tests in the the resources required were too great toon specially selected commercial farmsofficial DAFM Seed Testing Laboratory. compete with larger international breed- before DAFM will put the variety on itsThis is an added marketing advantage for ers. Cereal plant breeding stopped innational list and for a further year beforeISTA-produced certified seed as it is seen 1996. Government-owned plant breedingit is placed on the Irish recommendedas unbiased certification and free from programs in grass, clover and potatoeslist. Growers primarily only grow varie- commercial interests.(teagasc.ie) continue today. Successfulties recommended by DAFM due to the varieties such as Glenveagh perennialchallenges of the Irish climate. IRISH CLIMATE ANDryegrass, Arann clover and Rooster pota- CROP PRODUCTIONtoes have been bred from these programs.SEED CERTIFICATION SCHEME The Irish seed market is distinct because All the major international plant breedersAround 40,000 tonnes of certified cerealof our unique climate and thus many are represented in Ireland by agents whoseed are sold in Ireland each year andof the varieties sold here are exclusive avail of the services of PVDO. this has been relatively static for the pastto Ireland. According to FAO statistics decade. The wholesale value of this seed2017 (www.fao.org/faostat/), Ireland has VARIETY LISTING is about 18 million. DAFM is the certi- the highest yields in the world of wheat Due to the lack of native cereal breedingfying authority for Seed Certification in(10.2 t/ha), oats (8.4 t/ha), the sec-in Ireland, breeder agents conduct pri- Ireland under EU law. Unlike other EUond-highest yields of barley (8.3 t/ha) vate screening trials of all the materialMember States, seed certification is notand fourth-highest yields of oilseed rape sent to them by their international breed- carried out by third parties under official(4.1 t/ha). To anyone (un)lucky enough to ers. Once a variety has shown promise,supervision in Ireland. All certification ofhave spent a typical summer in Ireland, EUROPEAN-SEED.COMIEUROPEAN SEED I 15'