New restrictive EU Seed Law - join the campaign to stop it!!!

The Real Seed Catalogue are supporting a campaign to stop a terrible law that is currently under review, which if it's implemented, will hugely restrict the varieties of vegetables that be sold to small farmers and home gardeners.

I have paraphrased slightly and full webpage can be found here, but in a nutshell, Real Seeds have been working very closely with NGO’s and independent seed companies across the EU as well as DEFRA – UK Government regulator of the seed industry – to protect the UK seed industry and to make sure UK gardeners have access to whatever plants they wish to grow.

DEFRA and various NGO’s and independent seed houses are asking for total exemption from the law for home gardeners and small growers. 

I have already written to my local MEP - Ms Marina Yannakoudakis - asking her to support the abolishment of this brutal and restrictive law. An excerpt of my (fairly impassioned) letter is below:

"Please do not discount the needs of individual unique gardeners over multinational corporations who are quite openly pushing to monopolize the fruit and vegetable growing market. Is there anything more sickening than the sad fact, the majority of fruit and vegetables bought in supermarkets has been so modified that the seeds are essentially useless and unable to germinate? 

If this law goes ahead, it will be a complete travesty for our generation and all generations after ours. Climate change and the destruction of our natural eco habitats are already perilously close to the point of no return, who knows what will happen in ten, twenty or fifty years....please don’t let the loss of our individuality as home gardeners and our basic rights to be able to grow our own fresh fruit and vegetables be added to the many man made disasters this generation already has to deal with.

We are all unique as human beings and we deserve the right to be able to choose which fruit and vegetables to plant, tend, and harvest ourselves – and not be dependent on corporations who are acting with profit in mind, not people. Please do not allow this law to go ahead, I implore you as one human to another, do not forget your sense of right from wrong, please think of your own heritage, perhaps your grandmother, grandfather, uncle, aunt had their own garden that was their pride and joy as mine is to me.

I have attached a photo of the very first pumpkin I ever grew...please do not deny future generations the same exciting opportunity" 

Really at this stage, I feel like my blog is a bit like leaves in the wind, I throw some ideas and thoughts out there, but as I don't generally receive feedback, I'm not even sure if people read my updates... which is an odd kind of comfort, I can chat about whatever I like, with little consequence. However, if this post brings even just one more persons attention to this new EU Seed Law, I will consider it a success. 

Thank you and happy seeding....