From the CTPS Sunflower Soya Section

At its meeting on 25 November 2024, the Sunflower and Soya section of the CTPS began the 2024-2029 term by proposing the registration of six new sunflower varieties on list A and six on list B. The section also validated the principle of changing the registration rules for soya from the 2025 filings and looked into an intention to register peanut varieties, a first in France.

Among the six new varieties proposed for registration, one has been awarded the ‘Oil +’ claim, one is tolerant to a herbicide in the imidazolinone family, and two are for use in poultry.

The aim of changing the registration rules for soya is to stabilise decisions by broadening the control group, to allow the registration of varieties with more diversified profiles, in particular high-protein varieties for human consumption, and to take into account the earliness of varieties.

Participants in the section were briefed on the latest regulatory developments, CTPS news and the results of the 2024 sunflower season. The sunflower season was severely disrupted by the year’s rainy conditions, which made sowing and harvesting difficult and impacted yields, estimated at 21.5q/ha (provisional figure).

The section gave its opinion on the methodological discussions underway in DUS, in particular the broomrape tests, and VSCU , in particular the reduction of controls, the verification of controls, the use of data from digital phenotyping, the content of the VSCU leaflet…