No recorded meetings with EU commissioners.
Mission & Goals
The European Consortium for Organic Plant Breeding (ECO-PB) was founded in 2001 with the aim of promoting organic plant breeding and building up an independent expertise. As a non-profit association the main purpose is to foster organic agriculture, protect the environment and conserve agrobiodiversity through plant breeding programmes designed specifically for the needs of organic farming systems main focus of ECO-PB include:(i)Initiating, supporting and maintaining organic plant breeding program; (ii)Developing and investigating the concepts, scientific basis and financial tools for organic plant breeding; (iii)Developing and promoting appropriate standards, practice and legal frameworks for organic plant breeding; (iv)Providing a platform for exchange on organic plant breeding to European breeders, farmers, researchers and policy makers, as well as other IFOAM organizations; (v) developing policy briefs related to seed and plant breeding and breeding techniques compatible to organic
EU Legislative Interests
- EU draft legislation on plant reproductive material for food and agriculture (PRM) draft 5th July 2023 - EU draft legislation on New genomic techniques (NGT) draft from 5th July 2023 - EU Organic regulation with respect to seed (Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products); - Supporting DG Sante and CPVO, IFOAM EU working groups on delegated acts for EU 2018/848 on heterogeneous material, organic seed and animal data base, derogation rules; - Supporting DC Sante and CPVO, IFOAM EU working groups on implementing acts for forseen temporary experiment on organic varieties suited for organic agriculture (See preface of EU 2018/848) - implementing and monitoring temporary experiment on marketing of heterogeneous population (Council Directive 66/402/EEC; notified under document C(2014) 1681; 2014/150/EU); Request for prolongation of the temporary experiment set up by Commission implementing Decision 2014/150/EU providing for certain derogations for the marketing of populations of plant species pursuant to Council Directive 66/402/EEC; - harmonizing the implementation of organic Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 of 28 June 2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products with respect to national organic database, working groups for National annex I, II and III for derogations of conventional untreated seed; - REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the marketing and production, with a view to marketing, of plant reproductive material, and repealing Council Directives 66/401/EEC, 66/402/EEC, 68/193/EC, 1998/56/EC, 1999/105/EC, 2002/53/EC, 2002/54/EC, 2002/55/EC, 2002/56/EC, 2002/57/EC, 2008/72/EC and 2008/90; - Replacement of present seed directives by a unified European Seed law on EU Plant Reproductive Material Law (which was attempted in 2013) and unfortunately withdrawn; - Common Agricultural Policy (CAP); - EU Biodiversity Strategy; - EU Research Agenda (Horizon Europe); - GMO Legislation (Directive 2001/18/EC on the deliberate release of GMOs into the environment, Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 on genetically modified food and feed, Directive (EU) 2015/412 amending Directive 2001/18/EC as regards the possibility for the Member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory, Regulation (EC) 1830/2003 concerning the traceabilityand labelling of genetically modified organisms and the traceability of food and feed products produced from genetically modified organisms Directive 2009/41/EC; Court case C-528/16); -change Directive 98/44/EC to render legally binding the exclusion of plants, animals, genes and genetic traits that can be found in nature or obtained through conventional breeding, from patentability.
Communication Activities
Regular workshops on the implementation of the EU Organic regulation with respect to organic seed, organic variety registration, organic heterogeneous material Partner in EU Project LIVESEED and follow up project LiveSeeding to boost organic seed and plant breeding e.g. organic heterogeneous material and organic varieties. Participation in workshops and podium discussions on new seed law, farmers right for seed, NGT regulation, Trainings and workshops on organic varieties and organic heterogeneous material, organic breeding, Position paper on organic plant breeding, definition of organic variety, new breeding technologies, IP rights on plants, traits, genes Policy recommendation in collaboration with IFOAM EU on organic seed, promotion of organic breeding, seed sovreignty, conservation of genetic diversity, access to seed, farmers and breeders rights, Genetic engineering Public debate and science policy dialog on seed regulation and regulation of GMO and novel genomic techniques Participation in public consultations, conferences and workshops Observer of CPVO meetings to comment on European variety protection
Interests Represented
Does not represent commercial interests
Member Of
Member of IFOAM EU, IFOAM International, TPOrganics
Organisation Members
FiBL Switzerland, FiBL Germany, ITAB France, Louis Bolk Institute NL, Stichting Zaadgoed NL, Bingenheimer Saatgut DE, Rete Semi Rurali IT, Kultursaat e.V. DE, Getreidezüchtungsforschung Peter Kunz CH, Sativa Rheinau AG CH, Sementes Vivas PT, De Bolster NL, Fondazione seminare il futuro, IT, Agrologica DK,, https://www.eco-pb.org/members.html