On 8 July 2026, the Council's Permanent Representatives Committee approved a final compromise text for a new EU Regulation on the production and marketing of plant reproductive material (PRM), which will replace ten existing Directives and amend three related Regulations. The text consolidates and modernises PRM rules into a single Regulation, affecting all producers, marketers and users of PRM in the Union.
The Regulation covers PRM of genera and species of increased economic and social importance, classified by intended use (agricultural crops, vegetables, fruit, potato plants or vine production). It does not cover forest reproductive material, ornamental plants (except turf grass seed), PRM for export to third countries, PRM used solely for official testing, breeding, exhibitions or research, PRM transferred between non-professional users for private use, PRM under service contracts where the producer retains ownership, PRM transferred to or from gene banks, and organic heterogenous material (already under Regulation 2018/848). Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Réunion, Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin are treated as third countries for this Regulation.
PRM must generally belong to a registered variety and be produced and marketed in categories: pre-basic, basic, certified or standard seed/material. PRM of certain species, vine rootstocks and selected clones may only be marketed as pre-basic, basic or certified categories. Compliance for pre-basic, basic and certified categories requires official certification (or operator under official supervision) attested by an official label; standard category compliance is confirmed by the operator with an operator's label. Clones must be registered in a public register, and rules are set for in vitro production, multiclonal mixtures and polyclonal PRM. Professional operators may be authorised to perform certification activities under official supervision, including printing official labels. PRM must be kept in separate, homogeneous lots with a lot reference number for traceability.
The compromise text maintains mandatory certification for key species while exempting several categories (ornamentals, forest material, gene bank transfers, private transfers) and allowing operator-led certification under official supervision. This balances regulatory oversight with flexibility for operators, potentially reducing administrative burden for some producers while ensuring quality and traceability for economically important species.
Stakeholders most impacted include EU seed and plant producers, who face continued certification requirements but gain the possibility of operator-led certification; EU farmers and growers, who will have access to certified material with clear traceability; national authorities, responsible for overseeing certification and maintaining registers; and the ornamental plant sector, which remains largely exempt from the regulation. The Regulation is expected to be formally adopted by the Council and European Parliament in the coming months.