Argentina seed law regulatory negotiations

Negotiations regarding the update of Argentina’s Seed Law have progressed through technical discussions involving the Mesa de Enlace and the Asociación de Semilleros Argentinos (ASA). While these meetings aimed to build consensus among production and seed industry representatives, the Mesa de Enlace reported that no concrete news or final resolutions had been reached, citing complexities regarding intellectual property rights and the regulation of “own use” practices. Following these domestic discussions, United States Trade Representative (USTR) officials met with Argentine ministers to discuss commercial obligations and intellectual property standards. The USTR is specifically seeking the approval of a new seed law in Argentina, which has experienced delays due to disagreements between seed companies and agricultural representatives. The discussions also addressed issues concerning royalty payments and land exemptions. Recently, the National Seed Institute (Inase) convened representatives from the agricultural and seed industry sectors to advance the drafting of the new legislation. A meeting at the Secretariat of Agriculture was scheduled to review consensus points regarding the ‘own use’ of seeds for crops including soy, wheat, cotton, and legumes. A central negotiation point involves defining which producers are exempt from seed use payments. Discussions have shifted from a general 500-hectare exemption toward using surface area deciles from the Simplified Agricultural Information System (SISA) as a basis for negotiation. Inase aims to draft a legislative proposal for Congress within one month, a move viewed as a potential step toward aligning Argentine regulations with the 1991 Act of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV 91). At the LIDE Argentina Forum, business leaders emphasized that achieving long-term policy stability is essential for Argentina to realize its potential as a global protein powerhouse. Amidst these strategic shifts, the government continues to work through Inase to finalize the seed law reform.