Poor weather conditions this spring have forced some farmers to make decisions on prevented planting acres and what to plant.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture wants to remind farmers about the legal requirements for selling and buying seed in Minnesota. This includes cover crop seed.

There are several issues MDA has found in past years that violate Minnesota’s Seed Law. Buying grain from an elevator for the purpose of sowing is not legal. It is also illegal to brown bag or sell grain out of a bin. Furthermore, all seed sold in the state must be labeled.

“There are numerous reasons why Minnesota’s Seed Law restricts these activities,” according to Denise Thiede, MDA’s Seed Unit supervisor. “Farmers could be bringing in weeds through unlabeled and untested seed, or they may not be getting the type or quality of seed they paid for.”

In addition, almost all seed varieties have some form of intellectual property protection that restricts the use and sale of the variety under the federal Plant Variety Protection Act. Violations of this act can lead to significant fines for both the seller and the buyer.

If farmers are buying seed to sow on their land, MDA officials advise:

More information on the requirements for selling seed in Minnesota can be found at mda.state.mn.us/seed.

Source: MDA, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.