In our proposal, we are indeed talking about open-pollinated varietes of maize and common beans, mainly, in a context where due to chronic food insecurity many farmers are not able to safeguard seeds across the dry season. The invention we called zero emission ‘fridge’ is low cost, low tech, and it is an indigenous innovation of a local farmer called Gilberto Tethere in Maririni village, Cabo Delgado Province of Mozambique.

Average maize yields in Northern Mozambique are <800kg/ha, and can easily be doubled just by introducing for instance the open-pollinated Tsangano variety, which is a significant change for people struggling with food security. The proposal is about community-based seed multiplication and seed banking controlled by the communities.

Thanks for your interest in the issue, I'll know later this day whether the DM2009 jury will award our proposal or not, but being at the event has already allowed to connect with Biodiversity International represented here by Dr. Ehsan Dulloo, and we are exploring ways to join efforts to help protect crop diversity and indigenous knowledge.

Chris, Helvetas Mozambique

For another, the implication that seed produced outside the standards set for recognition (certification or FAO-style quality declaration) is likely to be defective in some way needs some caveats. If “is likely” means an almost certainty, then the statement is excessive. If it challenges in some way the existence of higher risks, then it is open to question. “Defective” would also need some elaboration. Quality assessments are relative and standards and views differ along the seed production and use chain, from breeder to processor and through farmers, and between members of any group of actors.

There is no doubt that there are risks. Seed production plots and lots occasionally fail to pass the certification standards. As to seed produced by farmers themselves, particularly as part of their normal crop production, it is common ground that its quality varies considerably. At the risk of opening a can of worms, I will quote Percy Schmeiser:

“Percy had saved and used his own seed, developing his own variety that was tolerant to local farming conditions. It has been destroyed by Monsanto’s Roundup Ready canola being released uncontrolled into the environment. Percy is now unable to use his seed again, and views that as one of the hardest things to happen and accept as a farmer. His lifetime of work is gone and has been taken away.”

The reference to proponents of high-tech seed breeding is also a frequently seen twist. Whilst breeders of new varieties are no doubt keen to see their varieties in the marketplace in the form of high-quality seed, considerations of seed quality are essentially the same for all types of varieties.

As to Helvetas Mozambique, it would appear that it is not among the 100 finalists. I wonder whether a fridge is necessary and what would be put into it.

An inbreeding depression in a maize open-pollinated variety under farmer conditions is possible, but unlikely. “Tired” seeds may have to do with a loss of favourable traits due to natural/unconscious selection (for lateness, for instance) or a loss of uniformity. Also, farmers sometimes replace seeds to find out if it’s the seeds’ genetics (or other factors like soil fertility) what makes the seeds “tired”…