(3) Final certification by the official certifying agency shall be based upon inspection of
a minimum representative sample of 5 pounds of cleaned seed. In the case of small-
seeded legumes, a minimum representative sample of 1 pound of cleaned seed shall be
submitted. The submitted sample of cleaned seed shall be representative of the entire
lot of seed to be offered for sale.
(4) Analysis, examinations, and germination tests of seed shall be conducted in
accordance with the rules of the association of official seed analysts entitled "Rules for
Testing Seed", Volume 12, No. 3, 1988, revised in 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992. The
rules are adopted by reference in these rules and are available from the Michigan
Department of Agriculture, Laboratory Division, 1615 South Harrison Road, East
Lansing, Michigan 48823, or from the Association of Official Seed Analysts,
Nebraska Crop Improvement Association, 268 Plant Science, IANR-UNL, Lincoln,
Nebraska 68583-0911, at a cost as of the time of adoption of these rules of $30.00.
History: 1994 AACS.
R 285.623.106 Containers and tags.
Rule 106. (1) A bag of seed that is to be offered for sale or sold as certified, registered,
or foundation seed shall be identified as to variety. Seed that is offered for sale or
sold as certified, registered, or foundation seed shall be placed in new bags that have
a 100-pound capacity or less and shall have been inspected, and approved by the
certifying agency. This seed may also be placed in bulk bags that have a 50-bushel
capacity or less and which may be reused if they are constructed so as to be self-cleaning
to prevent contamination by any previous crop residues. Bags shall be sealed pursuant
to instructions that are issued by the certifying agency. Attached to each bag shall be an
official tag that is issued by the official certifying agency. Bags shall be tagged or
labeled pursuant to the provisions of Act No. 329 of the Public Acts of 1965, as
amended, being S286.701 et seq. of the Michigan Compiled Laws, and these rules.
(2) Certified seed containers will be identified with a blue tag which indicates that the
certification standards established in these rules have been met.
(3) Certified seed of field beans, soybeans, and small grains may be identified by a
yellow tag, which indicates that all of the certification standards as established in these
rules have been met, except for the standards for germination. Field bean, soybean,
and small grain seed may be identified with a yellow tag if the minimum germination
is not more than 10 percentage points below the minimum germinations standards for
certified seed established for these crop kinds. The yellow tag shall carry the
following statement on the front panel of the label: "Meets all Michigan certification
standards for certified seed except germination."
(4) All rules for the production, conditioning, and testing of certified seed shall apply to
bulk transactions, except that the seed does not have to be in bags. All of the following
additional requirements shall apply to the bulk sale of certified seed:
(a) All field and seed standards that apply to bagged seed shall also apply to bulk
certified seed.
(b) Certified seed may be sold in bulk only by an approved retail seed facility or by the
processor. Certification is not valid after more than 2 transfers of ownership.
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