Red de Semillas “Resembrando e Intercambiando”
[Publicado en SAVE eNews 4/2012. +info: http://www.save-foundation.net/english/actual.htm]
From 16 to 28 October the 2nd week of the Agricultural Biodiversity in Spain took place through decentralized actions in different areas of the county. In this week, led by the Spanish Seed Network (Red de Semillas “Resembrado e Intercambiando”) in the framework of its campaign «Cultivate diversity. Sow your rights», many activities related to traditional varieties like courses, workshops, conferences, tastings and seed exchanges have taken place all around the country.
Spanish Seed Network
The loss of genetic resources in the agrifood system and the recovery of local varieties in family farming systems were the reasons for creating the Spanish Seed Network 13 years ago.
This organisation of a technical, social and political nature, is a national network that brings together more than 20 local seed networks that exist in Spain and provides instruments for carrying out activities regarding the conservation and use of agricultural biodiversity from the food sovereignty point of view, helping to coordinate activities amongst the different members and promoting their participation in the national and international level.
The main assets of this network are the people and the organisations that belong to it. They include farmers, researchers, consumers, technicians, local action groups, university staff, students, ecologist movements and all kinds of different collectives.
Campaign «Cultivate diversity. Sow your rights»
In 2009 the Spanish Seed Network has launched the Campaign «Cultivate diversity. Sow your rights» focused on promoting agroecological and family farming, the use of traditional varieties, the recovery of peasant’s knowledge and local culture, the fight against patents and GMO in agriculture, the requirement of a legal framework that allows peasants to produce and sell their own seeds and the demand of support from the public administrations to the work that peasants and seed networks are doing regarding the dynamic conservation and use of agricultural biodiversity.
The Spanish government, on the one hand, recognizes in the law Farmers Rights, to preserve, use and market their own seeds, the need to protect, preserve and develop the traditional knowledge regarding plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, and the right to participate in the decision-making at the national level on the policies related to the conservation and sustainable use of these genetic resources. However, on the other hand, it does not start any strategy to implement these rights, as reflected in the Report on the State of the Spanish Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. This situation highlights the lack of political will that the Spanish government has on this issue.
Traditional varieties provide organoleptic quality, not just visual, they filled with flavours and aromas our food and are an inseparable part of our intangible cultural heritage (Mediterranean diet). Traditional varieties contribute to food security because their inherent diversity allows an agroecological management of our farms, facilitating the cultivation of polycultures and are more stable in adverse situations. Traditional varieties symbolize ethical values, being the expression of food sovereignty and collective values without intellectual property rights and patents (except those stolen with biopiracy).
The demands
From the Campaign «Cultivate diversity. Sow your rights» the Spanish Government is urged to implement policies to really give to the farmers the rights to save, use and commercialize traditional varieties. These agricultural genetic resources must be part of their livelihoods.
A change in the legal framework and national policies that are considered unfair because of the principles that govern social life and the constitutional bases of the democratic state is expected to result from the action.
Therefore, the marketing of seeds by farmers themselves is promoted as a public, non-violent, political and conscious action against the law, committed with the intention to cause a change in the legislation and the governmental action. Acting thus the sense of justice of the majority of the community is appealed to, and declare that, in the opinion of Red de Semillas “Resembrado e Intercambiando”, the principles of social cooperation between people which makes the full right to food is not being respected by forbidding farmers to sell their seeds because traditional varieties are an essential resource for healthy food, respecting the environment through the correct use of natural resources, enhancing rural culture, ethical values and quality of life.
The Manifesto
The 2nd week of the Agricultural Biodiversity reclaims the Manifesto for the right of farmers to sell their own seeds of traditional varieties, signed in 2011 and 2012 by more than three thousand persons and collectives.
This year, the week has coincided with the International Campaign promoted by Vandana Shiva «Seed Freedom».
More information about the campaign and activities: www.siembratusderechos.info