Amendments to EU legislation suggested by the RHS should help smaller nurseries. The RHS has worked with the horticultural industry and Defra to produce a series of amendments to the EU Plant Reproductive Material legislation.
If these amendments are accepted it should mean that the impact of the legislation on the UK ornamental sector will be minimised, while smaller nurseries should be able to operate as they currently do.
The RHS is calling for:
- The exclusion of ornamental plants from the provisions relating to crop and related food crops.
- A re-drafting of the Article within the legislation relating to Officially Recognised Descriptions (ORD) which, as currently drafted, would require an ORD for all marketed varieties. An exclusion for plants that can be shown to be ‘commonly known’ has been suggested.
- An amendment that would remove the requirement for expensive and bureaucratic ORDs for new varieties.
The RHS is asking gardeners across the country to write to their MEPs to express their opposition to proposed EU legislation that could have a negative effect on the UK’s horticultural sector.
The RHS has developed an outline letter to help concerned gardeners, should they wish to write to their MEPs.
European Commission plant legislation
Identify UK MEPs who are members of the influential Agriculture and Rural Development Committee
Source: RHS – RHS Proposes Amendments to EU Plant Reproductive Material Legislation
