45 SEED TESTING INTERNATIONAL OCTOBER 2026 • TRAINING AND EDUCATION Participants and instructors of the ISTA Workshop on Multispectral Imaging for Seed Quality Assessment in May 2026, posing outside the course facilities at Rødvig, Denmark AN INCREASING NUMBER OF SEED TESTING LABORATORIES AND SEED COMPANIES have implemented or are exploring possibilities for imaging technology and image analysis tools for different seed quality determinations. The developments in optical and computer technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), increases the possibilities for seed related applications in seed testing and the seed production chain. This evokes a large demand among seed scientists and analysts for insight and hands-on experience in imaging technologies. To meet these needs the ISTA Advanced Technologies Committee (ATC) organises workshops on seed image analysis. In May this year an ISTA Workshop on Multispectral Imaging for Seed Quality Assessment was organised in Rødvig, Denmark, with a focus on image analysis for other seed determination (OSD) and purity determination. The workshop registration was quickly oversubscribed, showing the need for information, practical instruction and hands- on experience in this field. Thirty participants and eight lecturers and instructors gathered in the small and beautiful seaside town of Rødvig. The self-contained location ensured optimal interaction, lively discussions and networking among the participants during joint meals, free time and excursions. Participants from 12 different countries, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland were present. Participants from seed testing stations, seed companies, research institutes and technology providers joined the workshop. The aim of the ATC workshop was to introduce multispectral imaging (MSI) for seed quality assessment, present the current status, and discuss its future potential for use in OSD and ISTA Workshop on Multispectral Imaging for Seed Quality Assessment: focus on use for other seed determination and purity determination 27–29 May 2026, Rødvig, Denmark Birte Boelt1, Nadine Ettel2 and Bert van Duijn3 1Aarhus University, Slagelse, Denmark 2ISTA Secretariat, Wallisellen, Switzerland 3Leiden University and Fytagoras, Leiden, The Netherlands purity determination. During the workshop, participants acquired practical experience with MSI and were introduced to other imaging technologies. There was a short training session where participants used commercially available equipment to build test sessions to distinguish between small samples of weeds versus crop seeds. Examples of the practical use of imaging technologies in seed companies were presented, and we discussed the potential and pitfalls for the introduction of new technologies in seed quality assessment and regulation. The workshop started off with a lunch to allow the participants and lecturers to meet each other before the hard work started. In the first lecture, Nadine Ettel (ISTA TCOM Manager) explained the ISTA organisation and the role of ISTA in advanced technologies in seed testing. Bert van Duijn (ATC Chair, Leiden University and Fytagoras) gave a focus on the guidelines for the validation and use of image-based testing. Technical lectures were then presented on MSI by Birte Boelt (ATC Member, Arhus University) and Martin Himmelboe (TystofteFonden, Denmark). In these lectures, the basic principles as well as examples showing the achievements and pitfalls in the use of MSI in OSD were presented. After the coffee break, Jens Michael Carstensen (Videometer, Denmark) lectured in depth on the use of MSI in seed phenotyping and its applications in gene banks, breeding, seed processing and quality testing. Other types of imaging were illustrated by the next speakers. Johannes Wolf (Phenolytics, Germany) explained the principles of 3-D X-ray CT imaging and its potential for use in automated, high-throughput AI-based ISTA germination, vigour and seed purity analysis in the laboratory. Participants were introduced to RedGreenBlue (RGB) imaging by Thomas Stumpe (Marvitech, Germany) in his presentation on image analysis-based solutions for physical seed purity determination. Anders Ravnskjær Pedersen and Kim Bidsted (Tagarno,
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