May 23, 2002

Alsen Wheat Crosses Border Illegally

The North Dakota State Research Foundation has been alerted that some Alsen wheat may have been hauled to Canada illegally according to Stephen Sebesta, NDSU Research Foundation agriculture associate.

Alsen, a hard red spring wheat developed by the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and assigned to the North Dakota State University Research Foundation, is protected under the U.S. Plant Variety Protection Act (PVP) of 1994, Title V. "This means that the variety may only be sold by variety name and as a class of certified seed," Sebesta says. "So sales of non-certified seed of protected varieties are illegal. It is also illegal under the law to import or export, directly or indirectly, seed of a protected variety without the owner’s permission. It is the responsibility of the buyer and the seller of any seed product to determine the protected status of a variety. The NDSU Research Foundation will enforce its PVP rights of Alsen against any known violators."

The Research Foundation is currently tracking who is shipping the seed, where it has been sent and who received the seed. "Under the PVP Act, owners of protected varieties are entitled to seek settlement against violators for three times the damages plus attorney fees," Sebesta says. "Additionally, administrative fines of up to $5,000 per violation may be imposed on the seller if an illegal transaction violates North Dakota state seed laws."

The Research Foundation has licensed the exclusive rights to sell seed of Alsen in Canada to Canterra Seeds of Winnipeg. Canterra Seeds is also the only authorized purchaser of Alsen in Canada.

In order for seed of any crop to be sold in Canada, the variety must be registered. For wheat, registration protects the integrity of the different market classes grown in Canada so end-users are ensured a product with consistent quality standards. Canadian laws also prohibit the sale of unregistered varieties for food purposes. "Alsen passed the first year of registration tests in 2001 and will be tested again this year," Sebesta says. "In the meantime, Canterra Seeds has permission to increase the seedstocks in anticipation of registration. If a full registration is granted, Canterra will be allowed to sell that seed, on an exclusive basis, to Canadian farmers."

Alsen was developed by the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. It is moderately resistant to fusarium head blight, also known as scab. In 2001 nearly 75,000 acres of Alsen seed wheat was produced under certification in North Dakota.

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Source: Stephen Sebesta, (701) 231-6660, steve.sebesta@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, rmattern@ndsuext.nodak.edu