Federal Seed Act
- Introduced in the House as H.R. 5625 by Harry B. Coffee (D-NE) on May 3, 1939
- Committee consideration by House Agriculture, Senate Agriculture & Forestry
- Passed the House on June 7, 1939 (Passed)
- Passed the Senate on August 1, 1939 (Passed) with amendment
- House agreed to Senate amendment on August 3, 1939 (Agreed)
- Signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 9, 1939
The Federal Seed Act, P.L. 76-354 (August 9, 1939), requires accurate labeling and purity standards for seeds in commerce, and prohibits the importation and movement of adulterated or misbranded seeds. The law works in conjunction with the Plant Protection Act of 2000 to authorize the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to regulate the importation of field crop, pasture and forage, or vegetable seed that may contain noxious weed seeds. USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service is responsible for enforcing the labeling and purity standard provisions.
Titles of the Act
Title 7 Chapter 37 was authored as four titles establishing agricultural policy for the specifications of forage and vegetable seeds.
- Title I - Definitions - 7 U.S.C. §§ 1561-1562
- Construction with respect to labeling for variety and origin
- Agricultural seeds
- Vegetable seeds
- Weed seeds
- Noxious weed seeds
- Origin, kind, variety, and type of seeds
- Germination
- Hard seeds
- Pure live seed
- Label and labeling of seeds
- Advertisement
- Subject to prescribed tolerances
- False labeling and false advertisement
- Screenings
- In bulk
- Title II - Interstate Commerce - 7 U.S.C. §§ 1571-1575
- Prohibitions Relating to Interstate Commerce in Certain Seeds
- Records
- Exemptions
- Disclaimers and Nonwarranties
- False Advertising
- Title III - Foreign Commerce - 7 U.S.C. §§ 1581-1586
- Prohibitions and Procedures Relating to Importations
- Adulterated Seed
- Seed Unfit for Seeding Purposes
- Certain Seeds Required to be Stained
- Certain Acts Prohibited
- Title IV - General Provisions - 7 U.S.C. §§ 1591-1610
- Delegation of Duties
- Rules and Regulations
- Standards, Tests, and Tolerances
- Prohibition Against Alterations
- Seizure
- Penalties
- Cease and Desist Proceedings
- Separability of Proceedings
- Publication
- Authorization for Appropriations
- Authorization for Expenditures
- Cooperation
- Separability of Provisions
- Repeals
- Effective Date
Amendments to 1939 Act
U.S. Statutes related to Amendments and Federal Seed Act of 1939 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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See also
- Plant Disease Bulletin
- Seed bank
References
This article incorporates public domain material from Jasper Womach. Report for Congress: Agriculture: A Glossary of Terms, Programs, and Laws, 2005 Edition (PDF). Congressional Research Service.
External links
- Media related to Seedbanks at Wikimedia Commons
- "Federal Seed Act". Agricultural Marketing Service. U.S. Department of Agriculture.
- "Bureau of Plant Industry Bulletin - 1901-1913". HathiTrust Digital Library. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Agriculture: 285 no.
- "Inventory of Seeds and Plants Imported". HathiTrust Digital Library. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Agriculture: 43 v.
- Plant Disease Survey. "The Plant Disease Bulletin". HathiTrust Digital Library. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Agriculture: 6 v.
- Plant Disease Survey. "The Plant Disease Bulletin - Supplement". HathiTrust Digital Library. Beltsville, MD: United States Department of Agriculture.
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- Federal Farm Loan Act (1916)
- Agricultural Adjustment Act (1933)
- Agricultural Adjustment Act Amendment of 1935
- Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936
- Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938
- Agricultural Act of 1948
- Agricultural Act of 1949
- Agricultural Act of 1954
- Agricultural Act of 1956
- Agricultural Act of 1961
- Food and Agriculture Act of 1965
- Agricultural Act of 1970
- Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973
- Food and Agriculture Act of 1977
- Agriculture and Food Act of 1981
- Food Security Act of 1985
- Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990
- Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996
- Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002
- Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008
- Agricultural Act of 2014
- Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018
agricultural
legislation
- Hatch Act of 1887
- Agricultural Experiment Stations Act of 1887
- Agriculture Appropriation Act of 1905
- Agricultural Appropriations Act of 1922
- Cotton Futures Act (1914)
- Cotton Futures Act (1916)
- Grain Standards Act (1916)
- Wheat Price Guarantee Act (1919)
- Future Trading Act (1921)
- Grain Futures Act (1922)
- Capper–Volstead Act (1922)
- Agricultural Marketing Act (1929)
- Farm Credit Act of 1933
- Frazier–Lemke Farm Bankruptcy Act (1934)
- Bankhead–Jones Act of 1935
- Commodity Exchange Act (1936)
- Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act (1937)
- Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937
- Federal Seed Act of 1939
- Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954
- National Wool Act of 1954
- Federal Plant Pest Act of 1957
- Agricultural Fair Practices Act of 1967
- Farm Credit Act of 1971
- Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act of 1972
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission Act of 1974
- Agricultural Trade Act of 1978
- Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1980
- National Aquaculture Act of 1980
- Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act of 1983
- Extra-Long Staple Cotton Act of 1983
- Agricultural Credit Act of 1987
- Hunger Prevention Act of 1988
- Alien Species Prevention and Enforcement Act of 1992
- National Wool Act Amendments of 1993
- Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994
- Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998
- Agriculture Risk Protection Act of 2000