ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 digs deeper into the opposing challenges that appeared over the last decades in the international seed ‘regime complex’ (i.e. the international regulatory system of seed management). Four tensions are explained: (1) the tension between ‘public seeds’ and Intellectual Property Rights, where ownership is identified as a factor of rights imbalance; (2) the tension between advancements in biotechnology led by mega-agri-businesses and small-scale farmers, creating an economic imbalance; (3) the tension between ‘informal’ seed exchange networks and ‘over-regulation’ on seeds, pointing to a social sharing disruption; and (4) the North/South divide, focusing on the international political stake.
