b'RENOVATION VERSUS RECONSTRUCTIONAre we making the seed business more complex than it needs to be? Quentin Martin thinks maybe we are. Marc ZienkiewiczAS THE SEEDRegulatory Modernization (SRM) process kicked into high gear with the recent winter consultation spearheaded by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, seed industry stakeholders in Canada were faced with a big taskfiguring out how to tweak todays seeds regulations to make lasting change for the next generation.Its a process Quentin Martin says he doesnt envy his fellow seed industry colleagues who make up the SRM working group and task teams for having to go through. And dont forget the government officials tasked with spearheading it all, he adds.It cant be easy being in a situation where there are so many opposing views. I know they didnt create the issues that theyre dealing with today, and I understand that theyre just trying to figure out a way to reach a sensible resolution. Its a tough posi-tion to be in, and I can empathize with them, says Martin, owner of Ontarios Cribit Seeds.Martin is a board member for Seeds Canada and is also a member of the Ontario Seed Growers Association. You might say hes been around and knows the issues.He even has a few thoughts about fixing those issues, but hes seasoned enough to know that things arent always easy to fix.Theres a certain level of comfort in the slow-moving nature of the seed system. Its a complex business, and even though were trying to simplify it, theres still a long way to go. At times, I wonder whether the current process will make things simpler, or if it will just make things more complex due to the amount of time and energy being poured into it, he says. Quentin Martin is an Ontario-based seed grower.PHOTO COURTESY SECAN50/ SEEDWORLD.COMOCTOBER 2023'