LiveSeeding policy brief
This policy brief (LiveSeeding, September 2025) proposes a clear legal definition of “organic plant breeding” and recommends policy measures to enable registration and market access for Organic Varieties suitable for organic production (OV) and Organic Heterogeneous Material (OHM). Drawing on the EU Organic Regulation (EU) 2018/848 and the temporary Implementing Directives (EU) 2022/1647 & 2022/1648, the brief argues that adapted DUS (Distinctness, Uniformity, Stability) and organic VCU (Value for Cultivation and Use) testing must be perpetuated and expanded to additional species and integrated into the upcoming EU PRM Regulation. It clarifies differences between conventional breeding, breeding for organic, and organic plant breeding (the latter defined as all breeding activities conducted under certified organic conditions, respecting natural crossing barriers and excluding GMOs/NGTs and disallowed techniques per IFOAM). Key recommendations include ensuring OHM notification across all species, allowing breeders to choose organic or conventional VCU testing where appropriate, setting documented transition and duration requirements for organic breeding steps, preventing patenting of living breeding material and traits, and supporting on-farm or supervised organic testing to make the process cost-effective. The brief targets EU-level policy implementation to improve legal clarity and expand the portfolio of varieties adapted to organic systems ahead of the 2037 phase-out of derogations for non-organic PRM.
Key topics: organic plant breeding, Organic Varieties (OV), Organic Heterogeneous Material (OHM), DUS, VCU, EU Organic Regulation, seed registration
