Chile has a rich and profitable seed industry which has positioned the country as a key figure in global seed markets for its exports. The country is a leading exporter in the Southern Hemisphere and the third in the world for agricultural exports. Therefore, The Chilean Seed Association (ANPROS) was established to be a reliable partner for the country’s seed production. Through its work to support, develop and promote Chile’s seed industry, ANPROS has spent the last 63 years positioning Chile as a reliable and crucial player in global seed production markets.
Founded in 1959, ANPROS is home to 74 members which include producers, distributors, marketers, researchers, and a variety of other organisations which are related to and represent 98% of the seed industry and its operations in Chile. The core operations of the association are divided into various committees which work to develop individual sectors of the Chilean seed industry toward the united goal of developing Chilean Agriculture. ANPROS works to tackle all matters concerning seed activity on national and international stages, whilst ensuring that throughout this they are contributing towards the sustainability of the industry as a whole. The committees are vast and span a range of topics including, specific seed development and production, regional development, intellectual property, marketing and trade procedures to establish ANPROS as a leader in the seed trade industry.
The Phytosanitary Committee is responsible for regulation across the industry and advises on phytosanitary matters, the various daily queries regarding Chilean regulations and the global seed industry. This committee is part of the International Seed Federation, which allows ANPROS to develop in line with global seed regulations. However, the committee is involved in regional associations too, including the Seed Association of the Americas (SAA) to develop the industry on a localised level. ANPROS’s work through this committee establishes the Association into regional and global markets to bring in international standards of regulations, whilst aiding in the unique development of Chilean agriculture. Therefore, working closely with the Phytosanitary Committee is the Commercialization Marketing Committee, which is working to help the distribution of regulated seed towards its end markets. The committee work to ensure the interests of all involved partners in the seed trade industry, to place Chilean seed as a leader in its respective field. By positioning Chilean seed as regulated, high in quality and easily available via good trade links, which are established by the COMEX and Logistics Committee, it continues to develop the industry’s investment into Chilean agriculture and the economy.
To provide high-quality seeds, ANPROS has a range of committees which focus on various seed types to ensure a future of continued crop success. The first of these looks at corn, focusing on all aspects of its growth from seed to end markets, to optimize its production and highlight the ways that technology can aid in the production of corn seeds. The committee’s central function is to optimize the member companies’ operations and strengthen their relationship with the network of seed growers across the country to benefit specifically corn seed production. Similarly, the Canola Committee was established in 2003, to organise the companies of the association which produce canola seed. The committee, which now consists of 12 members, works to regulate, supervise and optimize the production and performance of canola seed across the region.
Following this, another committee under ANPROS is the Vegetable Committee, which looks at the regulation of sown products to ensure that throughout the operation there is varietal purity of the seeds. The committee’s main objective, much like the corn committee, is to position ANPROS as a coherent association which is working towards improving the seed production industry across the country. They believe in good communication across the associated companies, which will increase transparency across the productive sector. One way they are highlighting transparency and communication is through its geographic information system which was developed to highlight contamination, and instances where contamination could occur in the future. By developing this, the Association helps to build a strong and profitable sewn crop industry with its members.
Towards the future of sustainability, ANPROS is crucially aware of the role globalization and climate change play in the agricultural industry. Seed industries are constantly exposed to the entry of new pests and diseases. Therefore, the Biotechnology Committee are working to understand and advise the board of directors on the production, regulation and policies surrounding seed production, whilst actively participating in international discussions regarding genetically modified crops. The committee was created in conjunction with the Agricultural and Livestock Service, the Procedures Manual of the Live Plant Organisms and Modified Propagation. The committee is seeking to protect the environment whilst maintaining the phytosanitary heritage of the seed produced across the association. Consequently, their work to establish standardised procedures for the importation, production, and evaluation of genetically modified material, whilst ensuring the security of regional Chilean crop production, gives the association a competitive advantage to the industry in this region.
Furthermore, ANPROS leads the way with its insulation system which has been recognised globally for its tool to spatially order the production of seedlings to ensure high-quality, genetically pure and successful crops are produced. The technology was developed by ANPROS and now is managed and supervised across its uses in the industry. It provides crucial knowledge to farmers to help them organise seedlings, seed beds, the use of soil and the compliance regulations with biosecurity to ensure that the seeds are produced throughout the Chilean seed industry to a high standard. This technology was adopted by the National Institute for Agricultural Research (INIA) in a collaboration which incorporates information from AGROMET, an agrometeorological network, into the ANPROS Insulation System to provide seed companies with agroclimatic knowledge to again increase the efficiency of crop production. The combined system provides ANPROS members, and international seed markets, with innovative technology to help in decision-making regarding irrigation, planting, pollination, and phytosanitary issues. The system ensures that throughout the Chilean seed industry, ANPROS can ensure the profitable, high-quality and efficient development of seed to ensure its sustainability and stability towards a growing seed industry.
Overall, ANPROS focuses critically on various sectors of the seed industry by dividing into committees which work with the seed members to develop the industry towards a high standard of regulation, efficient production, and global status of the Chilean industry. The Association has established itself through its work and development of its Insulation System to leave a legacy of efficient seed production not just across Chile or South America, but across the world as the technologies continue to be adopted globally. Therefore, ANPROS is leading with innovative ideas and close attention to all facets of the seed industry by working with its members towards smaller focused goals which come together to benefit the agricultural development of Chile as a whole.
