THE Malaysian Food Security and Sovereignty Forum (MFSSF) is concerned that the Agriculture and Food Industries Ministry (Mafi) will table the plant seed quality bill, which has been in discussion since 2019, at the next parliamentary sitting.
According to the minister in a March 27 news article, this bill will cover all regulated seeds in terms of processing, testing, sale, distribution, import and export to ensure that their quality meets the set requirements and standards.
Regulated seeds mean any seeds from any plant species or variety that has commercial value prescribed in the regulations by a special board to be formed, namely the Seed Quality Board. This means all crop seeds are at risk of having their processing controlled under this law.
The regulation of all these seeds will be done through the enforcement of licences for all individuals who want to carry out any process involving regulated seeds as mentioned above. To obtain a licence, the applicant must pay a fee, which will be determined, send samples to an appointed laboratory for quality testing, and comply with storage, packaging and labelling standards. Any individual who violates this law can be fined between RM100,000 and RM200,000, or imprisoned for three to five years.
Quality seeds are important to farmers and consumers. However, the tabling of this bill in Parliament has a far-reaching impact beyond “seed quality” control, denies the rights of farmers, and supports only commercial seed producers. Further, it will prohibit the practice of saving, exchanging and selling seeds by farmers, a common and traditional practice in Malaysia.
The imposition of fines and jail terms on farmers simply for carrying out this practice is unfair, oppressive, and can provoke protests as seen in Indonesia and India, especially if the government is not mindful about the matter.
The proposed law, which requires farmers to perform laboratory tests and obtain certification, only encourages monoculture practices in the agriculture sector, where varieties introduced in the market will gradually decrease, discriminating against farmers’ varieties and seed systems, thus destroying biological diversity in general, thereby risking the country’s food production. For small farmers who sell seeds on a small scale at local markets, strict packaging and labelling conditions will deny them the right to sell, and the right of buyers to purchase their preferred seeds.
Big corporations or companies will control the Malaysian seed system, while small entrepreneurs and farmers who process seeds will slowly disappear, and the role of government agencies reduced. These companies will carry out seed processing, starting from testing to distribution and sales.
Even more unfortunate would be when government money is used to subsidise this private seed system and discriminate against the local seed system. When this happens, farmers’ choices will be limited, and they will have to follow the conditions and systems that such companies have set, like a predetermined system of pesticides and fertilisers. Indirectly, seed prices will increase.
We would like to remind Mafi that traditional farmers, as well as the role of small farmers, are recognised by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Convention on Biological Diversity, and United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas.
We urge the ministry to disclose this bill in full and call a public consultation before it is tabled in Parliament. The last consultation process with members of this forum was held sometime in 2019. It is crucial that another consultation with a wider audience is undertaken with the full bill in sight, as we do not know if Mafi has even considered the recommendations put forth by MFSSF.
Further, any legislation on seed quality should apply only to commercial companies, to ensure the seeds they sell are genuine and of good quality. Small-scale farmers, gardening enthusiasts, and those who run community gardens should be free to save, share and sell seeds, so long as it is not done commercially. – The Vibes, April 6, 2021
The Malaysian Food Security and Sovereignty Forum advocates agricultural policies and practices that assure food supply and sovereignty in Malaysia and around the world
