The approval of a plant variety

To be allowed to market seeds and other propagating material of regulated species of agricultural plants, vegetable plants and fruit plants in Sweden and EU, the variety must be approved for registration. This means that the variety should be admitted to the Swedish list of varieties or admitted to the EC common catalogues of varieties of agricultural plants or vegetable plants or fruit plants. Variety registration is a precondition for the certification of seed. Seed of regulated agricultural plant species may only be marketed as certified seed.

If the species are not listed in the variety lists, you may still market the seed. This applies, for example, dill, parsnip, buckwheat and smooth brome.

You find the Swedish Plant Varieties Gazette under Newsletter.

How to apply for addition of a variety to the national list of varieties

If you are a holder of a variety or his representative, you may apply for addition of a variety to the Swedish national list of varieties. The application should be submitted to the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Plant Regulations Unit. You find the application forms to the right.

What is required for a variety to be approved?

For a variety to be approved and admitted to the Swedish national list of varieties, it must be technically examined for at least two years in cultivation.

During the morphological technical examination, the variety must clearly differ morphologically from other known varieties in EC within the species (distinctness). The individuals within the variety must also be sufficiently coherent (uniformity). And after repeated propagation the variety must be stable, so that individuals within the variety should not differ over time (stability). It is the Community Plant Variety Office (CPVO) that is responsible for procedures, protocols and guidelines for the morphological examination, and for approval of the DUS-examination stations.

A variety of an agricultural species must have its value for cultivation and use tested. That is the variety should be better in any qualities other than varieties of the same species already listed in the Swedish national list of varieties. This is tested for at least 2 years in the cultivation and use test (VCU test) that SLU is responsible for. When tested, for example, the variety should give higher yields of good quality, or ripens earlier than other varieties, or be more resistant to common plant diseases. In Sweden vegetable varieties and varieties of turf grass are not tested for value for cultivation and use.

The variety must also have an approved unique denomination or name. The uniqueness is checked in CPVO database of variety denominations called "VarietyFinder". You may find the database at CPVOs homepage. The proposed variety denomination must be submitted to the Swedish Board of Agriculture. Even if the proposed variety denomination is approved in another country for the same variety, the form for approval of the proposed variety denomination must be submitted to the Plant Regulations Unit. You find the application form for approval of the variety denomination under Forms.

To ensure that seed delivered to the DUS examination and to the tested for value for cultivation and use is homogeneous and of the correct variety, seed must also be delivered to the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Seed Unit in Landskrona, for control of trial-seed. Quantity of seed for this control of trial-seed can be found to the right. You find information about the sowing date here External link..

You find more information about the procedures for test of the value for cultivation and use under More information.

Other rules apply for conservation varieties and amateur varieties

Conservation varieties and amateur varieties (variety developed for growing under particular conditions) are covered by slightly different rules and requirements than normal varieties. You can read more about the requirements on the page of Seed of conservation varieties External link. and Seed of amateur varieties External link..

You can apply for addition of a conservation variety or an amateur variety to the Swedish national list of varieties. You may submit the application to the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Plant Regulations Unit. You find the application forms under Forms.