H.R. 193 would force farmers to pay a fee on saved seeds and register them

Angel Clark

1/7/2013

Source …..

Farmers around the country Friday expressed frustration after learning about House Resolution 193. H.R. 193 would require farmers to register their seeds with the Secretary of Agriculture after a harvest. The farmers would then have to pay a fee for retaining those seeds. However, H.R. 193 is not that simple.

Farmers who purchase and grow patented seeds are the ones who would have to register their seeds after a harvest. A patented seed is a seed that is the product of human intervention and has been claimed as intellectual property. Although it may seem like a recent trend, Louis Pasteur made the first patent on a living organism in 1873. Pasteur patented yeast. Most patents in question, however, are patents by the company Monsanto on their genetically engineered seeds.

H.R. 193 would change things for farmers who purchase patented seeds and then grow those seeds. After the harvest, many farmers save the seeds that they can, seeds produced from the product they already paid for. H.R. 193 would force those farmers who save their seeds to register those seeds with the Secretary of Agriculture. After they register those seeds, the farmers would then have to pay fees set aside by the Secretary of Agriculture for keeping the seeds, “and for other purposes”.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH9) is a member of the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies and sponsored H.R. 193, which has been referred to Committee. Opponents of H.R. 193 are being urged to send a tweet to Kaptur and inform her of their opinions.