International Specialty Supply
Supplying Sprout Companies Throughout the World
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International Specialty Supply Supplying Sprout Companies Throughout the World
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820 East 20th Street Cookeville, TN 38501 USA 931 526 1106
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Dangerous
Seed on American Market SproutNet International Specialty Supply May 23, 2000 There
is much scarified seed that has made its way to the US market from Australia.
Not all seed from Australia is scarified, but we sampled some seed that was not
suitable for sprouting. Some lots you may want to watch out for are 9069,
9032, and 9123. They may have numbers that follow
them. According
to Dr Rob Wick’s small experiment (see "Sanitation of Injured Alfalfa
Seed", Dr Robert Wick, Nov. 5, 1999 SproutNet), 91.7% or more of
injured seed is not affected by sanitation. He feels that even a small
percentage of injured seed poses a threat. There
are some seed suppliers in the US market who are intentionally selling scarified
seed because it can be purchased at a fraction of the cost of non-scarified
seed. Does
scarified seed sprout as well as non-scarified seed? Indeed, possibly even
better. The damaged seed coat allows quick and even water penetration of
all seed. Consequently the seed produces a consistent product and because
all live seed germinates together, a good yield. There
are some suppliers who are telling growers "all alfalfa seed is
scarified". In a very literal sense this may be true. Anything
that reduces the hard seed count, including aging, is called scarifying. However,
saying "all alfalfa seed is scarified" is disguising the fact that the
seed they are selling was scarified in a way that it cannot be properly
sanitized. Bluntly
put, many seed suppliers are selling cheep, potentially lethal, seed.
Sprout
growers need to start asking for a seed test that includes crack count.
This count will tell you approximately the percentage of seed that cannot
be properly sanitized. An
easy way to determine the quality of seed is to look at in under a 10x
microscope. These can be bought at a hobby shop, toy store, or Radio
Shack. You won't see cracked seed under 10x, only chipped or broken seed. For
each damaged seed you see, double it, because you are only seeing one
side of each seed. If you see more than about 2-3 chipped or
damaged seed per 100 seeds, the seed is unacceptable for sprouting. For
every visibly damaged seed there is at least one cracked seed that is very
difficult to see. I have
attached a photograph of the un-scarified lot of seed we are currently selling
and scarified lot 9032, currently on the American market. Remember, seed
is responsible for over 7,000 confirmed cases of salmonella and E.coli
0157:H7 in sprouts that made people sick enough to report it, be hospitalized,
or killed. This is like a reverse lottery. Save money each time you
play with the potential of being the unlucky grand loser. Some
of these seed suppliers have been involved in several pathogen outbreaks and
still sell irresponsible seed. One who has been involved in several
outbreaks told me that he has no intention to quit selling scarified seed.
He said "Well Bob, that is what insurance companies are for."
This
problem won't end until seed suppliers quit hearing "Cheaper, Cheaper,
Cheaper" and start hearing "Safer, Safer, Safer". Cheep
seed is easy to come up with. Safe seed takes a major commitment to the
industry. Each
time you shop, call three suppliers and don't ask price. Ask them to show
you their safety procedures. Buy from the one who has worked hardest to
insure your safety, your customer’s safety, and the safety of the industry.
If just a couple dozen large growers did this on a regular basis, the seed
companies would start to realize that having safe seed means more than lip
service. Don't
believe anything your seed dealer says unless you have it in writing and
they show you how they derived at what they are saying. The person who
actually did the work should sign each step of their procedures. If you
end up defending your business practices in court, "The seed supplier told
me it was only buffed", just won't cut it. In
order to have a safe product you need to have:
If you
don't have A, you don't have B. Please
protect your customers, Don’t Buy Damaged Seed! |