National Forum on Seed Variety Registration Amendments: A Smart Regulation Pilot Project

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National Forum on Seed - Variety Registration
AmendmentsA Smart Regulation Pilot Project

• National Forum on Seed Meeting
• Winnipeg, Manitoba
• 27 July 2005

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Overview

• Smart Regulation Action Plans
• National Forum on Seed Pilot
• Variety Registration Proposal
• Cost-Benefit Impact Assessment
• Pre-Proposal - Issue Assessment
• Time Lines

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Government of CanadaSmart Regulation Action Plan

• Strategic Objectives
• Enhanced regulatory coordination and cooperation
• Increased policy coherence
• Improved transparency, efficiency, timeliness and
  predictability of regulation
• Strengthened planning and priority setting
• Improved identification, management and
  mitigation of aggregated and unintended impacts
  of regulation.
• Strengthened regulatory management

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Government of CanadaSmart Regulation Action Plan

• Guiding Principles
• Protecting the public interest
• Extending the values of Canadian democracy
• Leveraging the best knowledge in Canada and
  worldwide
• Promoting effective cooperation, partnerships and
  processes

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CFIA Smart Regulation Action Plan Regulatory
Strategy Project

• Strengthen Policy Development Capacity
• Strengthen Regulatory Process
• Introduce Lifecycle Management Approach
• Improved Consultation Reporting Framework
• Linked to GoC Action Plan
• Both Linked to Pilot Projects

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Pilot Projects Iterative Approach
CFIA Regulatory Strategy Adjust CFIA Regulatory
Strategy in response to feedback from staff,
stakeholders and GoC (Smart Regulation) direction
Iterative Refinements
Pilot Projects Inform and informed by CFIA
Regulatory Strategy and GoC Strategic Direction
Iterative Refinements
GoC Action Plan Input into Cabinet Directives on
Legislation and Regulation
Implementability
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National Forum on Seed (NFS)

• NFS - Stakeholder led forum for coordinating
  consultation and consensus building on policy or
  regulatory change.
• Variety Registration (VR) Working Group issue
  specific forum to forge consensus on
  cross-cutting elements of change initiatives
• Crop-Specific Working Group (CSWG) sub-sector
  specific fora to forge consensus on unique
  aspects of change initiatives

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Regulatory Process
Core Processes
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Issue Identification Assessment - Purpose of
Variety Registration

• Establishes an official, verifiable identity
  consistent with Internationally accepted
  Standards (OECD, AOSCA, etc)
• Limits commercial varieties to those of
  recognized merit
• Facilitates informed consumer choice and fraud
  prevention

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Issue Identification Assessment - Purpose of
Variety Registration

• Facilitates seed and crop certification
• Facilitates domestic and international movement
  of seed
• Facilitates enforcement of Seeds Regulations
• Compliance with seed purity standards
• Compliance with labelling requirements
• Compliance with PNT assessment requirements

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Assessment of Current System

• Varieties of all crops subject to registration
  require prior merit assessment
• Merit, for registration purposes means
• Equal or superior to appropriate reference
  varieties
• Variety registration officially recognizes
  varieties as distinct, uniform and stable
• Variety registration is required for all crops
  with variety name requirements (except corn, food
  grade soybeans, lawn and turf grass, chickpeas,
  sorghum, and mung beans)

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Assessment -Consultations to Date

• One size does not fit all for crop kinds
• System must be flexible and responsive to changes
  within the sector
• Need for timely implementation of a revised
  registration system
• Differentiation between the information collected
  prior to variety registration and
  post-registration performance testing

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Regulatory Development Elements of a Proposal

• Tiered registration system including
• Mandatory Prior Assessment
• May include assessment of agronomic, disease
  and/or quality traits
• Merit assessment (meets minimum criteria) or for
  information only
• 2) Listing (no mandatory prior assessment)
• - Similar to the Form 300 listing process plus
  the establishment of uniqueness.

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Regulatory Development Elements of a Proposal
(contd)

• Some form of registration requirement for CFIA
  certification (use of CFIA tags and grade names)
• Flexible approach to registration/listing based
  on crop specific focus
• Transparent, predictable process for movement of
  crops within schedules
• Enhanced risk-based approach to Contract
  Registration

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Regulatory Development Elements of a Proposal

• Progress hinges on the ability of the Crop
  Specific Working Groups (CSWG) to achieve a
  degree of consensus on key issues such as
• Schedules (crop placement)
• Pre-registration Performance Testing
• Post-registration Performance Testing
• Contract Registration

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Cost-Benefit Impact Assessment

• Increased scope for innovation
• Increased scope to manage change
• Increased pressure on post-registration elements
  of regulatory system.

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Pre-Proposal Issue Assessment

• Gap analysis on the need (or not) for
  listing/registration for use of CFIA tags and
  pedigreed grade names
• Confirm authority to require collection of
  performance information prior to (post)
  registration
• Assess alternative options for listing process
  (eg. formally recognize version of CSGA Form 300
  process)
• Assess impact on trade if imported seed held to
  same standards as domestic seed (eg. require
  listing /registration)

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Time lines
Summer/Fall 05 Consultations on proposal
elements Fall/Winter 05 Formal Consultation
on Regulatory Proposal Spring 2006
Pre-publication (Canada Gazette Part I) and
further consultation. Fall 2006 Publication
(Canada Gazatte Part ll ) and Implementation