The Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI) is an organization that created a system allowing plant breeders to label new crop varieties as open source. This system offers an alternative to patented seeds sold by large agriculture companies like Monsanto or DuPont. OSSI is a U.S.-based non-profit organization that works to create a protected shared collection of open-source seed varieties. It also focuses on education and outreach about seed rights and issues related to seed control.

OSSI was founded in 2012 by a group of plant breeders, farmers, and seed companies. Founders include Jack Kloppenburg, Irwin Goldman, Claire Luby, Thomas Michaels, Frank Morton, Jonathan Spero, Alejandro Argumedo, and Jahi Chappell. Tom Stearns supported and advised the founders early on. Carol Deppe and C.R. Lawn joined the OSSI board of directors in its early stages, offering valuable input from independent breeders and the seed industry. OSSI is managed by a board of directors, and as of July 2017, it included 36 plant breeders and 46 seed company partners.

Members of OSSI are opposed to the patenting of plant varieties because they believe it limits the freedom of plant breeders and increases the influence of large seed companies. Inspired by open source software, OSSI aims to create a "protected commons" of open-source seed varieties as an alternative to patented or legally restricted seeds. Initially, OSSI tried to create a legally strong license, but they found that software license rules did not work well for plants, as licenses would need to apply to every new generation of plants, creating too much legal work. Instead, OSSI chose to use an informal Pledge printed on seed packets or included with the seeds. This approach was simpler and better aligned with the project’s goals.

Pledge and mission

The Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI) Pledge is a promise made by farmers, gardeners, and plant breeders who use OSSI-Pledged seeds. This promise requires them to avoid patenting or licensing the seeds or any new versions of them. It also asks them to share the Pledge with anyone who receives the seeds or their new versions. The Pledge says: "You can use these OSSI-Pledged seeds in any way you want. In return, you promise not to stop others from using these seeds or their new versions through patents or other methods. You must also include this Pledge whenever you give away these seeds or their new versions." Using the Pledge ensures four freedoms for seeds and future generations:

• The freedom to save or grow seeds for replanting or for any other purpose.
• The freedom to share, trade, or sell seeds with others.
• The freedom to test and study seeds and to share or publish information about them.
• The freedom to choose or change seeds, cross them with other seeds, or use them to create new seed varieties.

OSSI’s mission is similar to groups like Seed Savers Exchange, but it is different because OSSI includes a clear Pledge with its seeds. This Pledge helps keep seeds free by creating a protected shared resource. OSSI is also different from systems like plant breeders’ rights, which limit how seeds can be used. The OSSI Pledge allows people to use seeds freely, except for restricting others. It also automatically applies to new seed varieties created from OSSI-Pledged seeds. OSSI does not include heirloom or indigenous seed varieties in its Pledge. It only includes varieties that are contributed and pledged by their breeders.

OSSI works with plant breeders and seed companies to achieve its goals. Some breeders agree to make one or more of their seed varieties available only under the OSSI Pledge. Seed companies that partner with OSSI sell these varieties, give credit to the breeders in their descriptions, label the seeds with the OSSI logo, and include the Pledge and information about OSSI in their catalogs and websites. A list of OSSI-Pledged varieties provides detailed descriptions, photos, and links to all partner seed companies that sell each variety.

OSSI also publishes articles in gardening and farming magazines during the seed-buying season to help people find its website and learn about its partner seed companies. For example, an article by Carol Deppe in the January issue of Acres/USA highlights 33 open-source organic-adapted vegetable varieties. In this way, OSSI helps create a market for seeds that are produced ethically and are "freed" from restrictions, similar to markets for "fair trade" and "organic" products.

Influences and early history

The work of University of Wisconsin sociologist Jack Kloppenburg, especially his book First the Seed: The Political Economy of Plant Biotechnology, 1492-2000 (2nd ed.), helped shape the creation of OSSI. First published in 1990 and updated in 2000, the book describes how seed ownership changed during the 20th century. These changes included the rise of new methods for breeding plants, the growth of laws that protect intellectual property, and the development of new technologies for crops. Kloppenburg studied how legal control over seeds affected people worldwide during a time when fewer companies controlled the seed industry. His research was inspired by the work of Pat Roy Mooney, a Canadian activist, and Cary Fowler, an American activist, who began discussing the ownership of seeds and genetic resources in the 1970s. Some scientists criticized these ideas in the 1980s and 1990s, but Kloppenburg argued that the expansion of laws protecting seed-related intellectual property is a major issue for the future of farming. He showed how farmers, gardeners, and plant breeders faced more limits on their ability to save, replant, share, or use seeds freely. This term, "freedom to operate," means how easily people can use seeds and their genetic material without legal restrictions.

As people became more aware of the limited number of seed genetic resources and the debate over who owns them, many countries started creating gene and seed banks to preserve these resources. Cary Fowler recently helped build the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway, which stores seeds from around the world. Kloppenburg’s research on seed ownership and control remains a key issue for future generations.

International groups, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the United Nations Environment Program, have worked to create fair and sustainable ways to use seed genetic resources. Agreements like the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and the Convention on Biological Diversity aim to help countries share and protect these resources. However, challenges still exist that limit how effectively these efforts can work.

Inspired by these ideas, plant breeder Thomas Michaels created the General Public License for Plant Germplasm (GPLPG) in 1999. The goal was to create a shared pool of plant genetic material that could be used freely to develop new crops. Two main rules of the license were: 1) GPLPG seeds could be used in any breeding program, and 2) any new crops created using GPLPG seeds must also be labeled as GPLPG. This license was based on a similar agreement used in computer software called the General Public License. The GPLPG was the first of its kind to treat plant genetic material like computer code, allowing it to be freely used to create new crops as long as the new crops also follow the same rules.

About 15 years later, the Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI) was founded. OSSI uses a system called the Pledge to share seeds and their genetic material. Anyone can use these seeds for any purpose, as long as they promise not to restrict others from using them and to pass the Pledge on if they share or sell the seeds. OSSI gives people the most freedom possible to save, replant, share, sell, trade, breed, and innovate with seeds.

Release of OSSI varieties and current activity

In April 2014, the OSSI released its first 36 open-source seed varieties.

In 2014, NPR reported that large seed companies might not use open-source seeds because patented seeds are more profitable. They also thought farmers might find it hard to buy open-source seeds. However, by July 2017, OSSI had more than 375 varieties of over 50 crops developed by 36 breeders and sold by 46 seed company partners. While some varieties were created by public sector breeders at universities and non-profit groups, most were developed by freelance breeders and seed companies.

On August 10, 2015, an OSSI-Pledged red romaine lettuce variety called "Outredgeous," bred by farmer-breeder Frank Morton, became the first plant variety to be grown, harvested, and eaten in space as part of Expedition 44 to the International Space Station.

OSSI has been studied in academic research in both the biological and social sciences. It is mentioned in The Sociology of Food and Agriculture by Michael Carolan. Many scientific journal articles have examined topics such as open-source plant breeding, genetic diversity, and intellectual property.

OSSI was discussed in Rachel Cernansky’s article titled “How ‘Open Source’ Seed Producers from the US to India are Changing Global Food Production,” first published in Ensia magazine and later reprinted in other publications, including Vox and Global Voices.

OSSI has formed a partnership with Seed Savers Exchange. Seed Savers’ new online and print editions of the Garden Seed Inventory will include the OSSI logo and the breeder’s name for all OSSI-Pledged varieties. The Pledge will also be listed at the beginning of the book.