Expertise

Quality, Quality Management and Quality Management Systems

Development of ESTA, a quality management standard and system for seed treatment and treated seed. This system is open for certification since November 2012; the standard and related documents are published on the webiste of the European Seed Association ESA.

Other efforts linked to quality management:

• Trainings on ISO 9001 and supporting implementation in 10 countries;
• Defining and streamlining processes as a prerequisite for ISO certification and logistical software implementation (especially using the IDEF0 model);
• Support for a laboratory ISO 17025 accreditation project,
• Support for quality assurance systems aiming at integration of the chain that starts with seed (like GSPP),
• Preparation of the supply chain of a seed company for a SOX audit (SOX = the Sarbanes-Oxley law of 2002, US anti-fraud legislation), and
• Developing an ISO 9001 compliant quality management system for an international seed company.

Long-term involvement in many aspects of the NAL authorization of horticultural seed quality laboratories. In 2000-2002:  NAL authorization of the quality laboratories of Syngenta Seeds in Enkhuizen, the Netherlands. These laboratories test vegetable and flower seeds for germination and the percentage of useable plants, freedom of seed-transmitted diseases, purity and trueness-to-type. The NAL conditions were brought in line with the new ISO standard in 2001. As Syngenta made the choice to certify the entire (European) vegetable seed company according to ISO9001, all ISO and NAL adaptations and its implementation were combined. Representative of Syngenta in the NAL Expert Committee and chairman of the Committee in 2002. In 2004-2008 and in 2013 on several consultancy efforts to support NAL implementations. From 2008 to 2011 involved in a Plantum effort to increase international acceptance of NAL. This project also resulted in an effort to find options for better using the ISTA system in the horticultural seed industry.

Project management and Chairing ISHI-Veg

Realizing project objectives in a multicultural environment is a key competence. Examples are (i) project management for the international implementation of a quality management system according to ISO 9001 in combination with the international rollout of logistic and financial software; (ii) member of the project management team and business expert in the integration of a seed company into another company, including the migration to SAP; and (iii) developing and implementing an ISO 9001 compliant quality management system for an international vegetable seed company.

As chairman of the Technical Co-ordination Group (TCG) of the International Seed Health Initiative Vegetables (ISHI-Veg) directing towards reliable and generally accepted test methods. (ISHI-Veg is an international joint effort of vegetable seed companies and institutes. Since 2001 ISHI-Veg has worked under the umbrella of ISF. Chairman during March 2001 - February 2004, July 2007 - July 2009 and October 2013 - january 2017).

Crop protection and biosafety

Development of biological crop protection and growth improvement systems, especially development of 'biologicals', as specialty products or in combination with seeds or young plants; seed treatments and coatings with prop protection products.
Consulting and support on establishing laboratories and quality assurance systems meeting or exceeding government demands.