The generation of seed production and the technological development of the local seed chain require, according to the Argentine Seed Association (ASA), a higher level of “predictability” both in economic terms and in terms of policies that facilitate the growth of investments.
That’s how he put it Alfredo PaseyroManaging Director of the Argentine Seed Association (ASA), in dialogue with the program Our Earthpublished by Radio profile AM 1190. “The seed chain has the same needs as the different sectors in Argentina: Create predictability and clear conditions and ensure that the investment comes into the country or grows what is already there. “There are many national companies consisting of three people, and they are the ones who take the risk of producing sorghum, sunflower, soybeans or feed spices and acquiring licenses to sell them,” he explained.
For this reason, Paseyro considered that currently in Argentina “The best conditions exist for the growth of this industry.. There is a lot to improve. I recently heard that the RIGI sets out conditions for investment in the Andes, and we understand that we want all this so that Argentina grows. These are the conditions that allow for a larger investment with greater predictability. The producer demands predictabilityand we in the industry are also demanding this because we do a similar activity with higher risk and larger investments,” he said.
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According to ASA figures, up to 25,000 direct jobs will be created in the Argentine seed chain, with a similar number of staff hired during harvest and in factories. He also highlighted the genetics of Argentine seeds: “There are studies that indicate that Argentine genetics in soybeans represent 40 to 45% of the market: this is truly a source of pride.“Paseyro said.
He assured that today in the seed industry, both local and international, “knowledge is shared. There are mutual licenses of all kinds and biotechnological events or germplasm licensing and gene editing with providers of the method that is gradually being shared. And there are companies with international characteristics but with 100 percent of the staff, along with the facilities and investments in Argentina.”
Intellectual property debate
When asked about the industry’s demands regarding intellectual property rights and the protection of rights to seeds, Paseyro assured that the seed activity requires the need to “fulfill the conditions for granting the breeder’s right so that a variety is new, different, homogeneous and stable, and this must be proven.”
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“When companies put it on the market,” he said, “they have to have the protection to be able to take advantage of the years that the state has given me (to collect fees), And here we have problems that come from practice. The manufacturer’s own consumption is not discussed. However, we are trying to improve the economic recognition of this reserve of use, for which we are finding solutions in other countries. So we suffer from this Argentine disorder and then we compete under unequal conditions.“Paseyro said about the impossibility of completing the revision of a new seed law for decades.
Seed Industry Profile
Founded 76 years ago, the Argentine Seed Growers Association (ASA) is composed of a diverse profile of companies, 70% of which are mainly small and medium-sized companies, dedicated to the production, generation and marketing of seeds in the country. This list includes companies such as Rusticana, ALZ Semillas, but also large companies such as Donmario Group and other multinational companies.
In the association there are also companies dedicated to gene editing and operating in the Argentine seed industry, and others dedicated to the development of methods that serve to verify variety identity, such as Sumagri and MachVisión.
“Today,” Paseyro admitted, Artificial intelligence, images, the use of algorithms and predictions are tools used in industry.. So the improvement takes place beforehand in the laboratory, before everything was in the field and we had the image of the agricultural researcher Norman Borlaugwith his hat and his notebook. And today a lot of work is done in the laboratory, with a lot of information and a lot of data, and then it goes into the field with much greater precision than you would like.”
According to the ASA director, the local seed industry “a diverse, complex industry because it has the complexity of every Argentine businessman. It is also innovative and challenging. Yes, we have a lot of knowledge: there are companies like Gear, Buck, Klein and Basso that are about to turn 100 years old, and then we have a long history of genetic improvement, and not many countries have that, especially in South America. With knowledge that comes from the public and private sectors.”
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He also recognized that the “great history” of Argentina’s production of wheat, corn, sunflowers, sorghum and also soybeans creates opportunities for future developments. Paseyro also mentioned INTA’s “good work” in sourcing seeds and genetics for cotton, rice and chickpeas. Paseyro explained that it is still necessary to focus on the development of segments such as “genetic improvement” in fruit trees, forestry and tobacco.
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