Some of our seeds are varieties which have been pledged under the Open Source Seed Initiative. We appreciate this effort to make sure that seeds will be available for future generations. So we want to explain what it means to grow OSSI varieties.
The OSSI is a group of plant breeders, seed companies, farmers, and other interested (and interesting!) people, who were concerned by the increasing restrictions on the saving and exchanging of seed. So they came up with the OSSI pledge as one way to help make sure that seed savers, breeders and growers will be able to use seeds freely – without being restricted themselves and without restricting others in their relationships with those seeds. Plant breeders can choose to pledge varieties they develop, so that they are protected from being patented.
The OSSI Pledge
You have the freedom to use these OSSI- Pledged seeds in any way you choose. In return, you pledge not to restrict others’ use of these seeds or their derivatives by patents or other means, and to include this Pledge with any transfer of these seeds or their derivatives.
The OSSI Pledge ensures the Four Open Source Seed Freedoms for this and future generations:
- The freedom to save or grow seed for replanting or for any other purpose.
- The freedom to share, trade, or sell seed to others.
- The freedom to trial and study seed and to share or publish information about it.
- The freedom to select or adapt the seed, make crosses with it, or use it to breed new lines and varieties.
You can find a lot more information, and a list of OSSI-pledged varieties, on the Open Source Seed Initiative site.