Illegal cotton seed sales are thriving in India, putting farmers at risk

Following the Delhi High Court’s rejection of Monsanto’s patent rights in April, the sale of illegal or unapproved cotton seeds on the black market in India has continued unabated amid a dearth of new variants from established seed producers. Concurrently, since old genetically modified variants, like Monsanto’s Bollgard II, aren’t as effective since pests develop immunities to them, they are met with little to no demand.

Around 6 million packets of unapproved herbicide-resistant (HT) cotton seeds will reportedly be sold ahead of the 2018 kharif season, up from 3.5 million last year, according to Livemint. Most of these seeds are said to be manufactured in Gujarat, and are sold in the state, and also transported to Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

The rise in the sale of illegal seeds has largely been caused by the failure of regulator, the Ministry of Environment’s genetic engineering appraisal committee (GEAC), to clamp down on the sales. The GEAC is said to be waiting on a report from a taskforce set up by the Prime Minister’s office - the Field Inspection and Scientific Evaluation Committee (FISEC).

The taskforce has been deliberating on the problem of the sale and cultivation of illegal seeds, since its inception in October 2017. Its draft recommendations include the raiding of the offices of companies that stockpile these illegal seeds as well as a ban on the sale of glyphosate - a herbicide that is used in tandem with HT cotton seeds.

A need to keep farmers happy?

Despite being well above the price of approved BT cotton seeds, farmers are buying illegal HT cotton seeds in droves because there’s a shortage in the supply of new and approved variants. Given that there’s less than a year to go to national elections and that farmers are an important vote bloc, the government likely thinks its a politically astute move to not crack down on sales of these seeds in the absence of other alternatives.

However, given that these seeds are illegal, which makes their quality questionable, farmers aren’t offered any protection or guarantees in the event that they fail. This makes it even more urgent for the Indian government to crack down on the sales of illegal seeds, for state government will likely be left too foot the bill if these farmers’ cotton harvests prove to be underwhelming.

By the time that the FISEC report is completed, the sales cycle for the kharif season will likely be over. Looking ahead to 2019, the Indian government can crack down on the sale of illegal seeds but it will need to incentivise seed producers to sell new variants and subsequently fast-track the approvals of these seeds. Otherwise, history will repeat itself again next year.