State Council announces reforms to stimulate seed industry

Summary: The State Council of the People's Republic of China (State Council) issued an

announcement titled Opinions on Deepening the Reform of Crop Seed System to Increase

Innovation Capability on its portal. The statement is expected to mature into specific

guidelines for the future development of China's seed industry.

Tag: Events in seed industry, reform, Examination And Approval Measures for Main Crop

Varieties, profit, tomato seed, sales channel, space mutation breeding, soybean, rapeseed

On 25 Dec. 2013, the State Council of the People's Republic of China issued an

announcement on its portal, titled "Opinions on Deepening the Reform of Crop Seed System

to Increase Innovation Capability" (the Opinions). The statement is expected to mature into

specific guidelines for the future development of China's seed industry.

The Opinions emphasize the following aspects: allowing complete market determination in

resource allocation; providing support to seed enterprises by introducing talented workforce,

technology and resources; protecting the legitimate interests and rights of scientists over their

inventions and creations; improving companies' innovation capabilities; and establishing a

commercial breeding system.

Six measures proposed by the Opinions

To strengthen seed enterprises' leadership in technological innovation

Seed enterprises are encouraged to increase investments in R&D and establish joint-stock

R&D institutes; scientific research institutes and institutions of higher learning (including

universities and colleges) deemed of public interest shall be separated from seed enterprises

established by them by the end of 2015, and other scientific research institutes shall be

gradually transformed into enterprises (after reforms, the researchers' years of work in their

original institutes shall be counted towards their pensions); new innovation platforms of seed

industrial technology, such as national and provincial technical research centers, enterprise

technical centers, and key laboratories, will be preferentially established in seed enterprises

qualified for operating in the breeding, production and promotion fronts; among others.

To stimulate researchers' enthusiasm

Breeding materials, techniques, new varieties, and technological achievements in general

developed by research centers and other institutions of public interest (including universities

and colleges) with the use of national funds, are eligible to apply for intellectual property

rights, and may be assigned monetary value and count as investment shares in seed

enterprises; public trading platforms for technological achievements in the industry will be

established; regulations for the transactions will be enacted, with private deals prohibited;

cooperation between research institutes and enterprises is to receive full support; and

researchers are encouraged to join enterprises and engage in commercial breeding; among

others.

To intensify efforts to tackle problems in national crop breeding

Five-year plans for the breeding of major crops, such as rice, corn, rapeseed, soybean and

vegetables will be designed. The aim is to improve the industry's scientific and technological

innovation capabilities, by achieving core breakthroughs in key areas, such as germplasm,

new varieties and the efficient propagation of seeds; the country shall help further companies'

commercial breeding through various research programs and special projects, and attract

social capital to participate in and emphatically foster seed enterprises that incorporate the

three levels, breeding, production and promotion; research and breeding platforms shall be

created, cooperation between enterprises and research institutes shall be closely established;

and so on.

To improve basic and public interest research

Study fields related to the seed industry shall be strengthened; research centers and

institutions of higher learning shall receive support to engage in basic and public interest

research in areas such as breeding theory, general technology, and innovation of seeds, with

the aim of developing modern molecular breeding technologies and methods, and creating

new cultivars featuring high resistance, quality and yield; national research funds for these

objectives shall be increased, while investments in the commercial breeding of hybrid rice,

hybrid corn, hybrid rapeseed, hybrid cotton and vegetables conducted by research institutes

and universities shall be gradually decreased; the preparation for and conduction of a national

medium-to-long term plan for germplasm conservation and utilization of crops and forests

shall be accelerated; and so on.

To accelerate the construction of seed production facilities

Policy support to major seed production facilities shall be increased and infrastructure for the

construction of seed and seedling production facilities shall be laid down; a series of policies

shall be implemented, such as insurance on seed production, subsidies on fine wood seeds

and seedlings, and awards for major grain crop seed producing counties; the transfer of land-

use rights to large seed producers and farmer cooperatives through land shares and land

lease shall be promoted; among others.

The news sourced from Seed China News released by CCM in January.

Table of Contents of Seed China News 1401:

Key events in China's seed industry in 2013, part 1

State Council announces reforms to stimulate seed industry

Five changes in the Examination and Approval Measures for Main Crop

Origin reports profit growth in FY2013

Heilongjiang tomato seed market improving

Oversupply of hybrid rice seeds to continue in 2014

Terminal sales: new marketing trend for corn seeds

Beijing Shenzhou: space mutation breeding to boost agricultural development

Heilongjiang soybean market still depressed in 2013

Autumn planting of rapeseed in Anhui in 2013/2014

Seed China News, a monthly publication issued by CCM at the end of every month, mainly

covers a diversity of topics, including market dynamic, company dynamic, crops, seed market,

etc. With the latest news in seed industry and in-depth analysis on government direction and

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