Council and Parliament reach provisional deal to boost the quality of forest reproductive material and support EU seed sector innovation 18:37 Today Council and the Parliament[...]

The Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional deal to improve the quality and availability of forest reproductive material. The regulation seeks to support innovation and competitiveness of the EU seed sector, while addressing sustainability, biodiversity and climate-related challenges.

Forest reproductive material (FRM) refers to seeds, plants and parts of plants, and it is used for the establishment of new forests, for reforestation, and for other types of tree planting, contributing to different objectives, including biodiversity conservation, climate adaptation, climate mitigation and the conservation of forest genetic resources.

Main elements of the agreement

The FRM provisional agreement maintains the existing principles of approval of 'basic material' and certification of harvested FRM before it is placed on the market. Under the proposed framework, member states would be required to include the basic material approved on their territory in the national registers, with the Commission publishing an EU-wide list to ensure full traceability. Furthermore, the regulation introduces the possibility for member states to authorise professional operators to approve basic material under official supervision of the competent authorities. However, the inclusion of that basic material in the national register is still left at the discretion of competent authorities.

In line with the proposal, there would be a stronger focus on assessing the sustainability features of basic material. In practice, basic material would undergo an assessment to evaluate traits that contribute to forest resilience, such as tolerance to pests or better adaptation to local climate conditions.

The agreement places a stronger emphasis on innovative production processes, digital tools and biomolecular techniques.

It also includes:

A harmonised and efficient control system

The new regulation will include its own tailor-made control framework - ensuring consistent, reliable oversight while reducing administrative and financial burdens. This includes rules on designated authorities, their powers, financial resources, and select elements from the official controls regulation (2017/625) such as: transparency, delegated tasks, certification, confidentiality, and staff training - to ensure consistency across member states.

National contingency plans

To strengthen Europe's capacity to respond to crises such as storms, fires, or pest outbreaks, the Commission proposed national contingency plans to help secure the supply of FRM. In the negotiated agreement, these plans will be voluntary and follow simplified requirements - lightening the administrative load while still ensuring preparedness and capacity where member states deem it necessary.

Extended list of tree species

To further strengthen the quality of forest reproductive material in the Union, the list of tree species covered under the regulation has been extended. Member states may apply stricter or lighter measures to species not listed in Annex I of the regulation, allowing for flexibility to reflect national forestry realities.

Obligations for operators

Professional operators must be registered, maintain proper records of suppliers and buyers, ensure full FRM traceability and identification throughout production and marketing, and provide users with relevant information regarding the specific material.

Next steps

The provisional agreement will now be endorsed by the Council and the Parliament, before being formally adopted and entering into force.

Background

The Commission submitted a proposal in July 2023 which aims to ensure that high-quality FRM is available and that the sector maintains its competitiveness. The FRM regulation will also contribute to the EU target of planting at least three billion additional trees by 2030 under the biodiversity strategy, as well as to the development of the bioeconomy.

In parallel, the Commission also proposed new rules for the production and marketing of plant reproductive material.

• Council negotiating mandate
• Commission proposal