The 28th Asian Seed Congress was held at the Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre in Christchurch, New Zealand from 20 - 24 of November 2023. This Congress was co-organized by the Asia & Pacific Seed Alliance (APSA) and the New Zealand Grain & Seed Trade Association (NZGSTA) as the official National Organizing Committee.
The Asian Seed Congress gathered the APSA members for the Annual General Meeting and technical sessions of its standing committees--Vegetables and Ornamentals, Field Crops, International Trade and Quarantine, Intellectual Property Rights and Biodiversity, and Seed Technology--on pressing issues of the industry such as Essentially Derived Varieties.
More than 60 companies showcased their products and services in the booths and exhibits, and trading tables were abuzz with more than 1,000 participants present.
The participants from the Philippines included PSIA President Dr. Mary Ann Sayoc, PSIA Executive Director Dr. Gabriel Romero, Ramgo President Pamela Chan, Allied Botanical General Manager Jason Villegas, Pilipinas Kaneko General Manager Haydee Cabungcal, Haverson General Manager Olivia Wong, SeedWorks General Manager Carlos Saplala, and their associates, as well as Dr. Frisco Malabanan of SL-Agritech who sits on the APSA Executive Committee. Ms Thelma Soriano of CropLife Asia gave a talk on Public Private Partnership in improving Phytosanitary Measures: A Case Study in Philippines, and a second talk addressing the menace of unauthorized seeds in Asia.
APSA announced the appointment of its new Executive Director Ms. Francine Sayoc, and the holding of the ASC 2025 in Mumbai, India. Sanya, China will host the ASC 2024.