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SEED TESTING INTERNATIONAL   www.seedtest.org
ACCREDITATION  •
Go to the Department of Expertise of 
Agricultural Crops and Horticulture 
membership page on the ISTA website: www.
seedtest.org/en/membership/department-
expertise-agricultural-crops-horticultu.html
following the reorganisation and merger of three 
government agencies – the Republican State 
Seed Inspectorate, the State Center for Variety 
Testing of Agricultural Crops and the Center for 
the Expertise of Grain and its Processed Products 
– our service was renamed the Department of 
Expertise of Agricultural Crops, which became 
the successor to RSSI.
Due to our lack of financial resources to pay for 
audit services, the ISTA Secretariat suspended 
our accreditation in September 2018, but with 
the retention of the right to membership and 
participation in the ISTA annual Proficiency 
Tests. As a result, our laboratory has temporarily 
lost the right to apply for ISTA accreditation and 
to issue Orange International Certificates. From 
2019 to 2023, due to the budget deficit of the 
Republic, a lot of work was done to find financial 
resources to pay for audit services.
In 2024, the Department’s budget paid CHF 
13000 for audit services, and an application 
for laboratory accreditation was submitted to 
the ISTA Secretariat. On 26 February 2025, the 
Department’s Central Laboratory was audited for 
ISTA accreditation by system auditor Branislava 
Opra and technical auditor Marija Miliojevic. 
Corrective actions were implemented between 
March and July, based on audit comments. 
After a long break from the last accreditation 
in 2015, there have been major changes in 
the requirements and conditions of the ISTA 
audit. New concepts have appeared in the 
quality assurance system, as well as risks and 
opportunities, etc. The process of eliminating 
inconsistencies revealed some difficulties. 
Despite this, the staff of the Central Laboratory, 
having made every effort in applying their 
experience and knowledge, under the strict 
guidance of international auditors, coped with 
such a responsible task. On 4 August 2025, we 
received an email confirming accreditation of the 
Central Laboratory, receiving our certificate on 
1 September last year. The Central Laboratory is 
accredited for all crops except grasses, tree and 
shrub species, flower species. The accreditation 
was awarded for the following analyses: 
sampling, purity and other seed determination, 
germination, moisture content.
Here we would like to mention the high 
professional level of the international auditors, 
Branislava Opra and Marija Miliojevic, as well 
as their excellent human qualities such as 
tolerance, responsiveness, friendliness and 
honesty. We express gratitude for their patience 
and understanding.
Fourth re-accreditation with ISTA, January 2015: 
Head of Laboratory Gulsyinat Noruzbaeva, 
Quality Manager Kaldaralieva Kulmira and 
system auditor Florina Palada
Laboratory staff with ISTA auditors Florina 
Palada and Jette Nydam, January 2015
Training of specialists in vegetable seed testing 
methods in Japan, November 2015: laboratory 
specialists and staff from the National Center for 
Seeds and Seedlings
Obtaining certificates of completion of training 
in Japan, November 2015
Laboratory specialists with international auditors Marija Miliojevic and Branislava Opra, during the 
ISTA accreditation in February 2025

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