[ DA ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 4, SERIES OF 1997, March 21, 1997 ]
CRITERIA FOR ACCREDITATION OF SEED POTATO PRODUCERS
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Pursuant to the implementation of the Seed Act and the need to provide and sustain adequate supply of seeds of the desired quality the following criteria for accreditation of seed potato producers are hereby promulgated:
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1. That he/she must be an individual farmer/grower or a member of the cooperative/seed association/farmer organization or private corporation/company.
2. That he/she must undergo training on seed potato production or have gained substantial skills and experiences on the basic principles and practices in seed potato production.
3. For seed association, cooperative or farmer-organization, the names of each member with their corresponding area planted for seed production must be submitted to the Seed Certifying Agency before any accreditation is issued. In cases where new members are accepted by the association, cooperatives and farmer-organization after accreditation, the Seed Certifying Agency must be notified in writing the new membership including among others the area planted and the location of their farms.
4. That the minimum area for seed production is 0.5 ha.
5. That the seed must be produced in suitable areas inspected and duly certified by the Seed Inspectors or any authorized representative of the Seed Certifying Agency.
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The suitability of the area is determined by the following:
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a) The field should be free from golden cyst nematode and bacterial wilt.
b) The field for seed production must have been rotated with corn and other cereal crops for at least 2 cropping seasons.
c) The field should be accessible to seed storage facilities.
d) The agro-climatic conditions for growing the crop should be appropriate.
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6. That the seed producer is strictly prohibited to grow more than one potato variety for seed purposes on a particular field and that he is not allowed to grow the same variety for other purposes other than seed in the same field.
7. The application for seed certification should indicate origin of seed and seed class (if imported, attach documents on quarantine requirements), seed class to be produced, variety, area to be planted, crop history of the farm and location of the farm. This shall be filed with the Seed Certifying Agency two months before planting.
8. That he/she is willing to have the field inspected by the Seed Inspector or any authorized representative of the Seed Certifying Agency anytime before planting, throughout the growing period, during harvesting and storage of seeds. He/she should also be willing to have his/her seed lot sampled and to allow the seed inspector to draw the required amount of seed samples for laboratory analysis for seed quality.
9. Application for accreditation shall be properly filled-up by the applicant concerned after the designated Seed Inspector or authorized representative of the SCA has validated the requirements stated herein and concurred by the Chiefs, NSQCS and recommended by the Regional Director before submission to the BPI for approval of the Director of Plant Industry.
10. The original certificate of accreditation is issued to the applicant and photocopies to the National Seed Quality Control Services in the area of production.
11. Certification of accreditation shall be valid for a period of 2 years. The performance of the accredited seed producer shall be validated before renewal of accreditation.
The implementation of this order shall be fully coordinated by the DA Regional Field Units through the Regional Seed Coordinators, the Chiefs of the National Seed Quality Control Services, Chiefs of the Plant Quarantine Services and the Seed Inspectors.
Non-compliance with the above requirements shall be ground for the denial of accreditation or cancellation of existing certificate.
This order shall take effect immediately.
Adopted: 21 March 1997
(SGD.) SALVADOR H. ESCUDERO, III
Secretary
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Secretary