NASC Unveils Seed Authentication Technology

The National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC) has unveiled a new technology known as Seedcodex Observatory that will be used to authenticate and reduce the sale of fake seeds to farmers.

According to the council, the initiative would support the NASC in the implementation of its new Seed Act, as well as ensure that farmers had access to quality seeds across the country.

The Director-General, NASC, Philip Ojo, told journalists in Abuja that the Seedcodex technology was designed and set up by the council’s partner, m-Pedigree Network Limited, to sanitise the seed space.

He added that the agency would also pilot the deployment of tamper proof certification tags to replace its old seed certification tags.

Ojo explained that the Seedcodex solution was an integrated technological platform that uses unique digital codes to authenticate and secure seeds.

He said the technology would enable farmers to text the unique codes on the certification tags to a short code and instantly receive a response informing them whether what they bought was genuine or not.

The NASC boss stated that the certification tags would have sections with serialised electronic codes which the farmer could send through SMS to a dedicated number so as to receive information on the genuineness of any seed.

He noted that the initiative was inaugurated with the support of the council’s partners, including the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, USAID, Partnership for Inclusive Agricultural Transformation in Africa and m-Pedegree Network.

Ojo warned those involved in illegal seed business by not being accredited by NASC to desist from such acts, as he stressed that they did not have the right approval to trade in seeds.

Also speaking on the Seedcodex technology, the Head of Corporate Affairs, m-Pedigree Network, Chukwudi Madu, stated that the use of the digital codes would enable farmers to reliably authenticate any seed they purchase.