EU Proposes Now Controlling…Seeds

From The Blaze.com (May 8):

The European Commission is proposing legislation that would have the government regulate what can be planted to its “tested, approved and accepted” list of seeds. Some worry the legislation, in addition to being over-regulation by the government, would lead to less biodiversity and that it could set a precedent that could someday criminalize the average gardener planting so-called banned seeds.

According to the European Commission, the Plant Reproductive Material Law seeks to update existing legislation by cutting down 70 pieces of law to five and reducing “the red-tape on processes and procedures for farmers, breeders and food business operators (producers, processors and distributors) to make it easier for them to carry out their profession,” the press release stated.

The commission believes its package modernizes and simplifies rules “guiding the operation of the food chain” in the best interest of protecting health.

“The package responds to the call for better simplification of legislation and smarter regulation thus reducing administrative burden for operators and simplifying the regulatory environment. Special consideration is given to the impact of this legislation on SMEs and micro enterprises which are exempted from the most costly and burdensome elements in the legislation,” the press release stated. [read more]

This is all about control. Yea, I know the EU is regulating seeds to “protect” the health of the general population. So, they say. They know best, I guess. Well, nearly 43,000 people signed a petition saying “don’t tread on my seeds!” To be fair the seed Nazis EU made some concessions:

• Home gardeners are now permitted to save and swap unapproved seed without breaking the law.
• Individuals & small organizations can grow and supply/sell unapproved vegetable seed - as long as they have less than 10 employees.
• Seedbanks can grow unapproved seeds without breaking the law.
• There could be easier (in an unspecified way) rules for large producers of seeds suitable for organic agriculture etc, in some (unspecified) future legislation – maybe.

See, the EU is a nice bureaucracy after all. Instead of confining you to a small box they’ll confine you to a medium sized box.