AOSCA review board clears 4 new CBD-dominant seeds

A publicly traded California biotech company announced Tuesday that four of its hemp seed varieties have been aproved by the national variety board of the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies.

Davis-based Arcadia Biosciences received eligibility for certified seed production for its GoodHemp brand varieties including Rogue, Umpqua, Santiam and Potomac.

All four varieties are seed-propagated, CBD-dominant varieties. Rogue, Umpqua and Santiam are currently available for seed sales, and Potomac will be available soon, according to a company statement.

According to AOSCA CEO Chet Boruff, seed certification helps to maintain variety purity, so growers can access the pure, high-quality seed they expect.

“Hemp varieties that have successfully passed through the AOSCA variety review process are eligible for the production of certified hemp seed, transplants or clones, following AOSCA standards,” Boruff said in a statement.

“The variety review is conducted by representatives of seed certifying agencies, academia, the seed industry and USDA, following requirements established in the U.S Seed Act, to make certain new varieties are distinct, uniform and stable.”

Growers in the nascent hemp industry have struggled to find high-quality seed, but the AOSCA national review board provides the assurances growers need, according to Randy Shultz, chief technology officer at Arcadia Biosciences.

“AOSCA certification signifies to the industry that GoodHemp seed is produced to the highest standards for genetic purity, uniformity, high germination and feminization rates and varietal identity,” Shultz said.

He added that the distinction provides market access to growers in Florida, as the state requires producers to source only AOSCA-reviewed and certified hemp seed for planting.

Arcadia Biosciences, which trades on the Nasdaq as RKDA, established a cannabis division, Arcadia Specialty Genomics, in 2019 with a 10-acre hemp cultivation facility on the island of Molokai, located between the islands of Oahu and Maui.

Since then, the company has been rapid-prototyping novel, non-genetically modified hemp varieties for its GoodHemp brand through its proprietary ArcaTech discovery process, which combines modern breeding science and genomics technology with market intelligence, according to a company statement.