USDA Publishes Report on Seed Competition

On March 6, USDA published a report representing findings and recommendations from a request for public comment and information in response to a 2021 Executive Order on competition. The report defines three key topic areas in which the Executive Order’s “whole of government” approach to promoting competition can be used to address challenges:

1. Ensure robust and reliable IP rights that enhance innovation and promote competition;
2. Ensure that IP owners exercise their rights within the scope of fair competition provided by law, and;
3. Rebuild critical national infrastructure for variety development and the provision of seed and other planting stock to create resilient seed supply chains.

In June 2022, ASTA provided comments to USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) in response to its request for public comment on Competition and the Intellectual Property System: Seeds and Other Agricultural Inputs. For more information, view the USDA press release and the report.

The ASTA team is reviewing the USDA report and will continue to work with the Biden Administration as they work to implement the recommendations to promote strong competition in the American seed sector and to ensure that intellectual property protection continues to be a key part of the seed industry’s research and innovation activities.