CRYSTAL, N.D. (Valley Information Stay) – A North Dakota farmer has paid $60,000 in penalties for violations of state and federal seed legal guidelines, together with infringement of selection proprietor rights below Plant Selection Safety.
Whereas his identification wasn’t instantly revealed within the launch, Valley Information Stay has confirmed that the farmer is Thomas Shephard out of Crystal, North Dakota.
The North Dakota State Seed Division found the violations throughout a regulatory audit. The division acts because the seed regulatory authority for the state.
The case represents the biggest seed regulatory penalty ever paid in North Dakota.
Enforcement motion particulars
The farmer violated legal guidelines involving unauthorized switch of protected seed varieties. The penalties had been imposed for infringement of the variability proprietor’s rights below Plant Selection Safety.
In a launch concerning the fantastic, Seed Commissioner Ken Bertsch mentioned the division takes selection safety points severely.
“A wholesome, vibrant and worthwhile seed business depends upon selection builders, seed growers and retailers, and the agricultural public all following state and federal legal guidelines that defend selection proprietor’s rights,” Bertsch mentioned. “The business can also be extremely depending on the orderly and authorized switch of seed know-how.”
Bertsch confirmed to Valley Information Stay that the incident was associated to 6 fields of spring wheat illegally planted within the 2025 crop 12 months. Every violation acquired the utmost penalty doable, resulting in the $60,000 fantastic.
Influence on seed business
Bertsch in contrast unlawful seed propagation to theft of property.
“Farmers rely upon the event of recent and improved sorts of all crops for profitability of their operations,” he mentioned. “This can not occur if selection protections should not honored or seeds are illegally transferred and misused. I liken unlawful propagation as theft of property- everybody concerned within the seed system from proprietor, to grower, to vendor loses a sale because of seed piracy.”
The Seed Division will proceed to control and implement state seed legal guidelines and can notify selection homeowners of violations discovered throughout regulatory audits and examinations.
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