b'History of Crop Improvement Associations1950Iowa CIA organized.1862190219081912Organization for Economic President AbrahamKansas andOhio SeedMontana Seed1924 1933 1940 1946 Cooperation and Development Lincoln signed the MorrillNebraska CIAImprovementGrowers AssociationIllinois CIAArizona CIAMississippiGeorgia CIA(OECD) seed schemes Land Grant Act organized Association founded organized organized CIA organized organized developed1860s 1880s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s18871901 1903 1919 1925 1937 1939 1941CongressWisconsinMinnesota CIARepresentativesSouth Dakota CropCaliforniaFederal SeedIdaho CIA fundedCIAorganized from United StatesImprovement & Seedand Utah CIAAct enacted formedagriculturalorganized and Canada organizeCertification Service formed organizedexperimentthe International stations CIA (later renamed1929AOSCA) Colorado, Kentucky, and North Carolina associations organizedfication for seed sold domestically is not as common as it oncesoybean field inspection services for a few major seed com-was, says Executive Director John Palmer. I attribute thispanies, says NCCIA Director Bill Foote. Seed companies are decline to an increase in sales of biotech-traitedseeds and anoperating on small margins and rely on organizations like NCCIA improvement in quality assurance by the large seed companies.to provide seasonal, highly experienced seed specialists to help However, foreign nations still want third party verification thatin times of peak labor demands.the seed they purchase is the genuine, high-quality article. Industrial hemp (IH) is one of our newest types of niche Some other projects the CCIA has started working on includeseed certification. There is little if any IH seed grown in the state, a hemp seed certification service and an online pinning map.but there is significant demand for high-quality IH feminized Our online pinning map, popular among sunflower seedseed and clones. Feminized seed and clonal production are in producers, has also been adopted by users in other states to tracktheir infancy and would benefit immensely if high-quality propa-placement of seed crops that require isolation from like crops thatgation material were available with the help of a responsible might cause contamination through pollen transfer, Palmer says.certification program. However, for the time being, the CCIA has temporarily closedThe most significant withdrawal of NCCIA services has been its seed testing laboratory. Palmer anticipates re-opening the labthe suspension of its organic certification program about nine to conduct DNA testing of seed for verification of trueness-to- years ago due to its extreme cost. Strawberry certification has type as these technologies become available and more affordable. also been suspended due to lack of activity. The loss of these The availability of water in California will have a huge impactprograms has been offset by large gains in sweet potato certifi-on the future of agriculture, he says. Over-population and acation. lack of political clout by the ag sector will also greatly changeNCCIA is facing a few huge challenges that are common to the shape of things to come. This is in addition to the relentlessmost seed certifying agencies, including: expansion of acres for trees and vines making it more difficult to1) Increasing seed piracy activity.plant seed crops such as hybrid sunflower in fields that have the2) Increasing number of varieties.requisite isolation. Row crop acreage is declining. We are cur- 3) Privatization of plant breeding and variety releases.rently exploring new opportunities for quality assurance pro- 4) Consolidation of seed providers. grams in vegetable seed crops. 5) Reduced participation in seed certification. Foote believes that in North Carolina, some crops pirated North Carolina Crop Improvement Association seed is planted on 70% of the acres. Enforcement of intellectual The North Caroling Crop Improvement Association (NCCIA)property (IP) rights is not keeping up with the ever-increasing has slowly morphed in the last 20 years into a more customer- unlawful use of seed. Foote believes this trend will continue as responsive organization. Traditional seed certification serviceslong as universities continue to develop plant breeders. are declining, while the demand for customer-specific seedFoote also anticipates use of newer microbiological technolo-quality service programs is increasing. NCCIA typically inspectsgies, i.e., gene editing and RNA silencing, will be a future influ-20 different crops encompassing approximately 100,000 acresencer for the seed certification industry. On the flip side of these annually, with big increases in the number of varieties offered fornewer molecular technologies is consumer acceptance. sale. In 2019, the association will inspect over 400 varieties; 10Is gene-edited food acceptable in the United States? he years ago, the NCCIA inspected less than 200 varieties.wonders. Our technology is way ahead of most peoples under-Where we lost certification services in wheat and soybeans,standing. People tend to fear the unknown, and food policy is we picked up significant seed quality services by performingheavily influenced by that fear.SW76/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2019'