Quality Factors

Quality Factors

The French maize seed industry has indisputable and undisputed advantages: a diverse farming environment, with highly-favourable soils and climate; consistent yields –due to the competence of both growers and technical teams; and quality.

Seed quality – particularly in terms of germination, identity, and varietal purity – is a strategic aspect, which requires permanent attention at every production stage.

Seed quality is the result of teamwork involving the grower, the seed company, the Inspection Service of the F.N.P.S.M.S., and the Official Control and Certification Service (SOC).

Every Actor Commits to :

GROWER MULTIPLYING THE SEEDS

  • Know the Technical Regulation and fully comply with it
  • Manage the crop according to its technical specifications
  • Ensure that they have all the necessary human and material resources
  • Allow the inspectors to check their crops.

SEED COMPANY

  • Distribute the production rules regarding the variety in question;
  • Take part in the technical monitoring of the crops;
  • Observe the implementation of legal inspections.

INSPECTION SERVICE

  • Train and qualify (licensed and supervising) technicians
  • Check crop compliance with the Technical Regulation
  • Draw up inspection reports
  • Classify the crop

SOC INSPECTOR

  • Carry out random inspections on at least 5 percent of crops
  • Train and audit licensed technicians.

The Path to Quality Quality starts in the field

1. Isolation

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I observe the isolation distances on every one of my fields.

Seed company

  • It provides the grower with the technical specifications.
  • It provides the grower with high-quality basic seeds.

2. Planting

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I make sure ahead of time that I have all the human and material resources needed for a successful crop.
  • I clean up my drills every time I switch from one parent plant row to another.
  • Grower who multiplies seeds
  • I observe the planting dates and sowing method
  • I plant the basic seeds that correspond to the variety under contract
  • I plant two edge rows of male plants on all my plots, every time
  • I plant isolation male rows if necessary
  • I identify my field (with signs, etc)
  • I keep the SOC labels of the basic seed bags

Seed company

  • It reports the crops to the GNIS
  • It guides the grower and assists them during the technical monitoring of their crops

Inspection Service

  • It qualifies and assigns the LTs to the crops

3. Thinning

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I remove all female/male/regrowth impurities (off-types) as soon as possible, until the end of the flowering stage.

Seed company

  • It guides the grower and assists them during the technical monitoring of their crops.

Inspection Service

  • It contacts the grower
  • Based on the SOC labels, it checks the compliance of the basic seed lots and the plot identification
  • It records the planting dates and sowing method, the previous crop, and the area that was inspected
  • It checks the compliance of the isolation (distance and/or isolation males) as well as the presence of male border rows
  • It checks the compliance of the crop condition.

4. Detasseling

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I plan out the tasseling operations.
I guarantee good crop condition.

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I train and guide my detasseling personnel
  • I walk my maize fields once or several times a day, to assess the detasseling needs
  • I detassel the plot as often as necessary, in order to remove all tassels of female plants before pollen emission (including the underdeveloped plants)

Seed company

  • It guides the grower and assists them during the technical monitoring of their crops.

Inspection Service

  • It visits the plots as often as necessary
  • It checks the compliance of the crop condition, varietal identity, pollen emission, detasseling, and sanitary condition
  • It records the flowering dates
  • It records the inspection results in the GNIS-SOC database and it classifies the crops.

5. Male Row Destruction

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I remove male parent plants before harvest, as per the seed company’s recommendations.

Seed company

  • It guides the grower and assists them during the technical monitoring of their crops.

6. Harvest

Grower who multiplies seeds

  • I observe the harvest date indicated by the seed company
  • I make all the harvested crop available to the seed company and I guarantee its identification prior to its shipment

Seed company

  • It sets the harvest date and communicates it to the grower.