Utah Code § 4-16-102

Current through the 2024 Fourth Special Session

Section 4-16-102 - Definitions

As used in this chapter:

(1) "Advertisement" means any representation made relative to seeds, plants, bulbs, or ground stock other than those on the label of a seed container, disseminated in any manner.

(2) "Agricultural seed" includes:

(a) grass, forage, cereal, oil, fiber, and other kinds of crop seed commonly recognized within this state as agricultural seed;

(b) lawn seed;

(c) combinations of the seed described in Subsections (2)(a) and (2)(b); and

(d) noxious weed seed, if the department determines by rule made in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, that a noxious weed seed is being used as agricultural seed.

(3) "Blend" means seed consisting of more than one variety of a kind, each in excess of 5% by weight of the whole.

(4) "Brand" means a word, name, symbol, number, or design used to:

(a) identify the seed of one person; and

(b) distinguish the seed of one person from the seed of another person.

(5) "Certifying agency" means:

(a) an agency authorized under the laws of a state, territory, or possession to officially certify seed and that has standards and procedures approved by the United States Secretary of Agriculture to assure the genetic purity and identity of the seed certified; or

(b) an agency of a foreign country determined by the United States Secretary of Agriculture to adhere to procedures and standards for seed certification.

(6) "Coated seed" means seed that has been covered by a layer of materials that obscure the original shape and size of the seed resulting in an increase of the weight of the seed.

(7)

(a) "Complete record" means all information that relates to the origin, treatment, germination, purity, kind, and variety of each lot of agricultural seed sold in this state.

(b) "Complete record" includes seed samples and records of declarations, labels, purchases, sales, conditioning, bulking, treatment, handling, storage, analyses, tests, and examinations.

(8) "Conditioning" means drying, cleaning, scarifying, and other operations that:

(a) could change the purity or germination of a seed; and

(b) require a seed lot to be retested to determine the label information.

(9) "Controlling the pollination" means to use a method of hybridization that will produce pure seed that is at least 75% hybrid seed.

(10) "Dormant" means viable seed, excluding hard seed, that fail to germinate when provided the specified germination conditions for the kind of seed in question.

(11) "Flower seed" includes the seed of herbaceous plants that are:

(a) grown for their blooms, ornamental foliage, or other ornamental parts; and

(b) commonly known and sold under the name of flower or wildflower seed in this state.

(12) "Foundation seed," "registered seed," or "certified seed" means seed that is produced and labeled in accordance with procedures officially recognized by a seed certifying agency approved and accredited in this state.

(13) "Genuine grower declaration" means a statement signed by a grower which, for each lot of seed, provides the:

(a) lot number;

(b) kind;

(c) variety, if known;

(d) origin;

(e) weight;

(f) year of production;

(g) date of shipment; and

(h) name of the person to whom the shipment was made.

(14) "Germination" means the emergence and development from the seed embryo of those essential structures that are, for the kind of seed in question, indicative of the ability to produce a normal plant under favorable conditions expressed in whole numbers.

(15) "Hard seed" means seed that remains hard at the end of the prescribed germination test period because the seed has not absorbed water due to an impermeable seed coat.

(16)

(a) "Hybrid," applied to kinds or varieties of seed, means the first generation seed of a cross produced by controlling the pollination and by combining:

(i) two or more inbred lines;

(ii) one inbred or a single cross with an open pollinated variety; or

(iii) two selected clones, seed lines, varieties, or species.

(b) The department shall treat hybrid designations as variety names.

(17) "Inert matter" means all matter that is not seed, including broken seeds, sterile florets, chaff, fungus bodies, and stones, as determined by methods defined by rule.

(18) "Inoculant" means a commercial preparation containing nitrogen-fixing bacteria applied to seed.

(19) "Kind" means one or more related species or subspecies of seed that singly or collectively are known by one common name, for example, corn, oats, alfalfa, and timothy.

(20)

(a) "Label" means any written, printed, or graphic representation accompanying and pertaining to any seeds, plants, bulbs, or ground stock whether in bulk or in containers.

(b) "Label" includes a representation on an invoice, bill, or letterhead.

(21) "Labeling" includes a tag or other device attached to, written, stamped, or printed on a container or accompanying a lot of bulk seeds that:

(a) claims to specify the information required on the seed label by this chapter; and

(b) may include other information related to the labeled seed.

(22) "Lot" means a definite quantity of seed identified by a number or other mark, every portion or bag of which is uniform within recognized tolerances for the factors that appear in the labeling.

(23) "Mixture" or "mix" or "mixed" means seed consisting of more than one kind, each in excess of 5% by weight of the whole.

(24) "Mulch" means a protective covering of a suitable substance placed with seed that:

(a) acts to retain sufficient moisture to support seed germination and sustain early seedling growth;

(b) aids in the prevention of the evaporation of soil moisture;

(c) aids in the control of weeds; and

(d) aids in the prevention of erosion.

(25) "Noxious weed seeds" means:

(a) prohibited noxious weed seeds; or

(b) restricted noxious weed seeds.

(26)

(a) "Off-type" means a seed or plant not part of the variety because the seed or plant deviates in one or more characteristics from the variety.

(b) "Off-type" may include a seed or plant that:

(i) is of another variety;

(ii) is not necessarily any variety;

(iii) results from cross-pollination by another kind or variety; or

(iv) results from uncontrolled self-pollination during production of hybrid seeds.

(27) "Origin" means:

(a) for an indigenous stand of trees, the area on which the trees are growing; and

(b) for a nonindigenous stand of trees, the place from which the seeds or plants originated.

(28) "Other crop seed" means the seed of plants grown as crops other than the kind or variety included in the pure seed, as determined by methods defined by rule.

(29) "Person" means an individual, partnership, corporation, company, association, receiver, trustee, or agent.

(30)

(a) "Prohibited noxious weed seeds" means those weed seeds determined by the commissioner that are prohibited from being present in agricultural, vegetable, flower, tree, or shrub seed.

(b) "Prohibited noxious weed seeds" include the seeds of weeds that are highly destructive and difficult to control by good cultural practices and the use of herbicides.

(31) "Pure seed" means seed exclusive of inert matter and all other seed not of the seed being considered as determined by methods defined by rule.

(32) "Restricted noxious weed seeds" means those weed seeds determined by the commissioner that:

(a) are objectionable in agricultural crops, lawns, and gardens of this state; and

(b) can be controlled by good cultural practices or the use of herbicides.

(33) "Seed for sprouting" means seed sold for sprouting for salad or culinary purposes.

(34) "Sowing" means the placement of agricultural seed, vegetable seed, flower seed, tree and shrub seed, or seed for sprouting in a selected environment for the purpose of obtaining plant growth.

(35) "Tetrazolium test (TZ)" means a biochemical seed viability test using the compound 2, 3, 5 triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC), as specified in Part II, Tetrazolium Testing Handbook, Contribution Number 29, to the handbook on Seed Testing, prepared by the Tetrazolium subcommittee of the Association of Official Seed Analysts, 2008 Edition.

(36) "Total viable" is:

(a) equal to the sum of percentage germination, percentage dormant seed, and percentage hard seed; or

(b) determined by a tetrazolium test for species identified in the rules for testing or for species for which there are no rules for testing.

(37) "Treated" means that a seed has received an application of a substance or been subjected to a process designed to reduce, control, or repel disease organisms, insects, or other pests that attack seeds or seedlings.

(38) "Tree and shrub seed" includes seed of woody plants commonly known and sold as tree and shrub seeds in this state.

(39) "Type" means a group of varieties so nearly similar that the individual varieties cannot be clearly differentiated except under special conditions.

(40)

(a) "Variant" means a seed or plant that:

(i) is distinct within the variety but occurs naturally in the variety;

(ii) is stable and predictable with a degree of reliability comparable to other varieties of the same kind, within recognized tolerances, when the variety is reproduced or reconstituted; and

(iii) was originally a part of the variety as released.

(b) "Variant" does not include an off-type.

(41) "Variety" means a subdivision of a kind that is:

(a) distinct, meaning a variety can be differentiated by one or more identifiable morphological, physiological, or other characteristics from all other varieties of public knowledge;

(b) uniform, meaning that variations in essential and distinctive characteristics are describable; and

(c) stable, meaning a variety's essential and distinctive characteristics and uniformity will remain unchanged when reproduced or reconstituted as required by the category of variety.

(42) "Vegetable seed" includes the seed of those crops that are:

(a) grown in gardens or on truck farms; and

(b) generally known and sold under the name of vegetable or herb seed in this state.

(43) "Weed seed" means the seed of all plants generally recognized as weeds within this state, as determined by methods defined by rule.

(44) "Weight" means the net weight of the commodity.

(45) "Wholesaler" is a person who predominantly supplies seed to a distributor rather than a customer.

Utah Code § 4-16-102

Amended by Chapter 528, 2023 General Session ,§ 15, eff. 5/3/2023.

Amended by Chapter 153, 2021 General Session ,§ 1, eff. 5/5/2021.

Amended by Chapter 355, 2018 General Session ,§ 9, eff. 5/8/2018.

Renumbered from § 4-16-2 and amended by Chapter 345, 2017 General Session ,§ 175, eff. 7/1/2017.

Amended by Chapter 324, 2010 General Session.