By Fawad Shah, President/CEO
Increasing visibility through capacity building has been among the focuses of Minnesota Crop Improvement Association. The Taiwan Ministry of Agriculture and Taiwan Seed Improvement and Propagation Station invited me and Mr. Kobus Van Huyssteen of the South African National Seed Organization to visit Taiwan to assist them in readying their bid to join the OECD Seed Schemes.
Taiwan is a stunningly beautiful country, but only a small amount of its land is suitable for cultivation because mountains cover about 75 percent of the land. Our first destination was Taipei City, where we visited the Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture and received an overview of crop production as well as the importance of agriculture to the local economy. We spent the following three days at the Taiwan Seed Improvement and Propagation Station (TSIPS) in Taichung City, where we and TSIPS personnel discussed the general framework, prerequisites, and advantages of joining the OECD Seed Schemes.
We thoroughly examined their documents, offered our insights and suggestions, and described the procedure and time frame for joining the Schemes. A visit to the corn post control plots was scheduled after a tour of the ISTA lab located in the TSIPS facility. I gave a talk about the Schemes certification system and how it is used to produce high-quality seed. We met with the Taiwan Seed Trade Association and several seed industry participants at our next destination, Tainan City, in the south.
Some of Taiwan’s major seed companies export seed widely—to almost 30 countries—despite the fact that seed production is still done on a small scale. A visit to three such companies gave us insight into their diverse seed variety portfolios and the techniques used to consistently produce high-quality seed.
By joining the OECD Seed Schemes, Taiwan’s government and seed industry hope to advance their country, gain a place at an international forum, expand seed exports, and further boost their agricultural economy. Although there is still work to be done, I am optimistic that Taiwan will soon fulfill all the requirements and be granted permission to join the Schemes.
As we do each year, Minnesota Crop Improvement Association is putting together an informative program for our Annual Meeting. The event will be held on January 29, 2025, at the Holiday Inn & Suites in St. Cloud. The Annual Meeting is an opportunity to recognize individuals in our industry through the awarding of our Honorary Premier Seed Grower, Premier Seed Grower, and the Achievement in Crop Improvement awards. Plan to attend this important event! Learn and network with others from the seed and agricultural industries.