b'HOW TO IMPROVE SEED MOVEMENT AROUND THE WORLDPART 2 A DEEP DIVE INTO THE MULTILATERAL SYSTEMS APPROACH.BY: MARCEL BRUINSWHY IT MATTERS A bilateral format and for fresh fruit/vegetables, says solution to overcome the problem of diverg-ing phytosanitary regulations is a multilat- Souza Richards. eral systems approach (SA), a concept thatThe IPPC, as the global standard-setting body Moving seedis being proposed and promoted by the seed sector. for phytosanitary measures, encourages countries to around theSAs have been used effectively in many agriculturalshare their experiences and best practices to foster world can be asectors, though not yet in the seed sector. To learnknowledge exchange and enhance the implementa-headache. One ofmore about the SA, Seed World Europe spoke withtion of SAs worldwide. the major hurdlesIsabel Bezuidenhout, phytosanitary manager at theThe examples given are just a few, and many to overcome areSouth African Seed Organization (SANSOR), Merelmore experiences under a bilateral format exist glob-the many and oftenLangens, global manager industry affairs at BASFsally. However, none exists for seeds to date and mul-diverging nationalvegetable seeds business and chair of the Internationaltilaterally. There are, however, a number of different phytosanitarySeed Federation (ISF) Systems Approach ExpertSA projects for seeds under design, such as the case regulations. EachGroup, and Rose Souza Richards, seed health man- of the COSAVE project on corn seeds, ReFreSH in country has aager at ISF.the U.S. and at ISF at the international level, adds different set ofIn the first part on this topic, we looked at whySouza Richards.requirements.the SA proposal was necessary, what it entails, andLangens adds that the SA the seed sector has These regulatorywhat are its main benefits. In this second part, we willin mind is somewhat different, as ideally it would differenceslook at experiences with a SA, what countries andfunction as a multilateral system. Also, SAs are gen-put a strain oncompanies need to do to prepare themselves, and whaterally implemented to avoid import bans or when no companies inprogress has been made so far in the regulatory sphere. single measure is available. So, the SA is meant as terms of resourcesan alternative phytosanitary measure, developed in to meet all thoseEXPERIENCE WITH A SYSTEMScollaboration between NPPOs and the seed sector. requirements, andAPPROACHBezuidenhout underlines that a SA for seed will not cause delays andThere have been experiences and case studies relatedbe based on specific requirements per pest. even rejections ofto the implementation of SAs that the InternationalRather, it would include general phytosanitary seed shipments. Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and its memberrequirements to achieve multi-species control. countries can learn from. These experiences are in aStill, says Langens, there are benefits to look-16ISEED WORLD EUROPEIEUROPEAN-SEED.COM'