News

Bert van der Feltz will step down as president and CEO of East-West Seed. Van der Feltz will be succeeded by Douwe Zijp – currently Vice Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the company. 

November 19: APSA is pleased to announce and congratulate five prominent scientists who are being recognized for their excellence and contributions to seed and plant breeding science, research and development in the Asia-Pacific region. 

The Indian and Asian seed industries have lost one of their true promoters and champions for small and medium seed producers, in the sad untimely demise of Mr. Kollipara Niranjan Kumar on 8 May 2021. 

Kelly Grant Keithly, 76, of Keithly-Williams Seeds in Yuma, Arizona passed away on September 20. 

Mumbai, India – 17 November 2025 – With the Asia–Pacific’s US$29.7 billion commercial seed industry taking center stage, business leaders, seed producers, regulators and policy advisers from across the globe are convening in India’s financial capital this week for the 2025 Asian Seed Congress (ASC).

IN BRIEF:

• APSA’s big return to China: Celebrating 30 years, APSA and CNSTA welcome 1,500+ delegates to the 29th Asian Seed Congress in Sanya, Hainan.
• Seed powerhouse: The Asia-Pacific region leads the global seed market, accounting for 40% of seed volume, with field crops and vegetable seeds leading the way
• Cutting-edge plant breeding: Advances in gene-editing and new breeding techniques drive APAC’s push for resilient crops and food security.
• Evolving biotech rules: China, Japan, India, Philippines, Thailand and others adopt flexible regulations to fast-track next-gen seeds for market.
• APSA’s future roadmap: New strategy focuses on policy, member support, and operational excellence to empower the industry as APSA aims to boost regional impact
•  

Bangkok, Thailand — As new breeding technologies evolve rapidly to meet growing global challenges, the Asia-Pacific seed industry welcomes science-based regulatory approaches by regional policymakers to secure the future of food production. Thailand's newly implemented gene editing regulations have been hailed as a crucial step toward driving innovation in crop development, addressing urgent issues like climate change and food security.

Representives of seven international seed industry and plant breeders ortganizations are praising a move by the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) to adopt new Explanatory Notes (EXN) on Essentially Derived Varieties (EDVs).

Tainan and Bangkok: Some 208 participants,  representing 31 member seed companies of the 2021 APSA-World Vegetable Center Vegetable Breeding Consortium met online May 11-12 to discuss and diliberate on promising vegetable R&D progress.

Bangkok, Thailand: The Asia and Pacific Seed Alliance (APSA) has been granted a Foreign Private Organization (FPO) license to operate in Thailand.

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APSA gets new Office Bearer

Rahul Pagar and Sanjay Bisht appointed to APSA’s Working Group of Integrated Vegetable Seed Companies (WIC) a new Chair and Co-Chair 

The Asia and Pacific Seed Alliance (APSA) and the International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

In response to reports of mysterious, illegal and/or unsolicited packages of seeds mailed

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Welcome to the APSA July 2020 newsletter. We hope all of you are staying safe and well during this time.

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