Variety Registration

The CFIA's Variety Registration Office (VRO) registers varieties of most agricultural crops in Canada. Variety registration serves several purposes:

1. it ensures health and safety requirements are met
2. it verifies claims made and ensures accurate representation in the marketplace
3. it provides identification and traceability of plants with novel traits (PNTs)
4. it ensures varieties meet the internationally recognized definition of a variety
5. it acts as the respository for the official variety description and the official reference seed sample which are used to verify varieties throughout their commercial lifespan
6. it plays a gatekeeper role for maintaining/improving quality standards for grains in Canada
7. it facilitates the seed certification system in Canada

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The key acts and regulations we enforce are:

• Seeds Act
  • Seeds Regulations [Part III and Schedule III]

Information we provide for the plant industry includes:

• Procedures for the Registration of Crop Varieties
• CFIA Recognized Crop Specific Recommending Committees in Canada- Contact information
• Frequently asked questions: use of variety names, import and sale of unregistered varieties
• Registered Varieties and Notifications from the Variety Registration Office
  • List of Varieties which are Registered in Canada
  • List of Varieties with Novel Traits and Their Progeny which are Registered in Canada
• Variety Cancellation
  • National Wheat Variety De-registration Protocol Adopted
• Seed Program Modernization
• Related Links