What Does a Crop Seed Label Include? A Detailed Explanation of Its Significance
Editor's Note
The seed label is an important attribute of commercial crop seeds. Legally and reasonably marking the seed label can most directly indicate seed quality information. It not only benefits seed production, operation and use, and helps strengthen management, but also helps avoid seed disputes and protects the legitimate rights and interests of all parties involved in seed production, operation and use.
The Seed Law of the People's Republic of China established the system of truthful seed labeling, and successively issued supporting measures and standards such as the Measures for the Administration of Crop Seed Labels and the General Rules for Crop Seed Labels. The General Rules for Crop Seed Labels is positioned as a mandatory requirement of national technical specifications. Its contents include labeling principles, labeling items, labeling content specifications, production requirements, use supervision, etc., and it suits the application and development requirements of China's seed industry.
Seed production enterprises should package and produce seeds strictly in accordance with the requirements, so that the vast number of farmers can buy with confidence and use with peace of mind. This is also a form of self-protection for the enterprise.
What is the significance of the seed label?
Answer: Through the carrier of the seed label, explanations or statements are made regarding the licensing provisions, quality requirements, seed characteristics, quantity, quality responsibility holder or other relevant conditions of “qualified seeds”, and corresponding quality responsibility is borne for their true condition.
What is the definition of the seed label?
Answer: Specific patterns and written descriptions fixed on the surface or inside and outside of seed packaging. For seeds that can be sold without processing and packaging, the label refers to the specific patterns and written descriptions provided by the seed operator to the seed user when selling seeds.
What is the function of the seed label?
Answer: The function of the seed label is to clearly indicate quality information and clarify quality responsibility. It is also the basis for seed users to identify seed quality when purchasing seeds and for seed quality supervision and management agencies to confirm seed quality.
What are the principles for seed label marking?
Answer: Truthful, legal and standardised. Truthful——the content marked on the seed label should be true and valid, and consistent with the commercial crop seeds being sold. Legal——the content marked on the seed label should comply with the provisions of national laws and regulations and meet the mandatory requirements of the corresponding technical specifications. Standardised——the expression of the content marked on the seed label should be accurate, scientific and standardised, and the required marking content should be completely described on the label.
The text used for marking should be Chinese. Apart from registered trademarks, the standard Chinese characters published by the State Language Commission should be used. Hanyu Pinyin or other scripts with a strict corresponding relationship may be used at the same time, but the font size should be smaller than the corresponding Chinese. Except for the manufacturer name and address of imported seeds, foreign scripts with no corresponding relationship to Chinese should not be marked.
Seed labels should be produced with clear and easily distinguishable printing, and warning signs should be eye-catching.
What content should be marked on the seed label for major crop seeds domestically produced, packaged and sold?
Answer: Crop type, seed category, variety name, place of origin, major crop seed production licence number, major crop variety approval number, crop seed operation licence number, quality indicators, quarantine certificate number, net content, year and month of production, manufacturer name, manufacturer address (including contact information).