Terminator technology genetically edits plants to produce sterile seeds at harvest. It was developed by the multinational seed/agrochemical industry and the US government to prevent farmers from replanting harvested seeds and to force farmers to buy seeds every season instead. 

Terminator seeds have not yet been field tested or commercialized. Terminator is sometimes called Genetic Use Restriction Technology (GURTs) - broad term referring to the use of an external chemical inducer to control the expression of a plant's genetic traits.

The 10 largest seed companies control half of the world's commercial seed market. If the Terminator is commercialized, companies will likely incorporate the sterility genes into all their seeds. This is because genetic seed sterilization provides a much stronger monopoly than patents – companies are trying to make it biologically impossible for farmers to reuse harvested seeds, rather than suing farmers for saving seeds.

Canadian farms of all sizes are saving seeds, and the practice is growing as the farm income crisis gets worse each year. Worldwide, more than 1,4 billion people, primarily small-scale farming families in the developing world, depend on farm-stored seeds as their primary source of seeds. 

Terminator seeds will enforce reliance on external seed sources and disrupt the age-old practice of farmer seed selection, exchange and breeding – for centuries Native and farmer seed diversity development has been the foundation of Canadian seed stock.

Do not hesitate to contact our expert team to get detailed information about the GMO Free and NON GMO label and certification, or to apply for certification.