From the 1st of July 2011, the first GSPP (Good seed and plant practices) accredited tomato seeds will be available. GSPP is a new international business chain system for hygiene and prevention, focusing on Clavibacter in tomato and rootstock for heated glasshouse markets. In the near future also GSPP Plants will come available.

Good seed and plant practices (GSPP) has been established after an increasing number of Cmm (Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis) outbreaks began occurring globally over the last 5 years. With an increasing scale of production, trade and distribution, the consequences of these outbreaks are economically serious and result in a loss of trust between seed suppliers, plant raisers and growers.

Independent and transparent

Therefore, the French and Dutch tomato breeding and plant raising companies, united in Plantum NL,

UFS and SF3P, jointly initiated the GSPP Foundation. The Foundation developed an independent and transparent system for Cmm risk management and prevention. Compliance is audited by independent auditors.  The GSPP logo is to become the symbol for industry and chain commitment. Beginning July 1, the logo will be printed on seeds packages and later on documents for plants. The documents and labels being clear and unambiguous.

Investigation in case of an outbreak

GSPP strictly follows industry standard hygiene protocols, including independent accreditation audits. In case of an outbreak of Cmm inside the GSPP production chain, the Technical Investigation Procedure (TIP) will be put into operation, which includes an independent expert review and independent testing to find the root cause of the problem and improve the system.

Joint responsibility

GSPP is a chain effort and is the joint responsibility of seed companies and plant raisers. As GSPP is a voluntary accreditation system the key for its success lies in the large participation of all stakeholders in the production and supply of vegetable tomato seeds and plants. By best practice sharing and constructive industry dialogue across the chain, continuous improvement of the whole system is an important target. Because of the high level of hygienic measures which are applied, the GSPP system will also bring benefits to other crops grown under GSPP conditions.

Press contact:

- The Netherlands : Mr J. den Dekker

Phone + 31 182 688668/ info@plantum.nl

- France : Mr E.Lesprit

Phone +33 153 00 99 42/ info@ufs-asso.com