Building resilience through innovation and collaboration: Euroseeds2026 brings the seed sector together in Valencia

Euroseeds2026 Congress in Valencia brought together seed sector professionals, policymakers, researchers, innovators and students from across Europe and beyond for three days of discussions on the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of plant breeding, seed production and sustainable agriculture.

Against a backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty, evolving regulatory frameworks and increasing demands on agricultural systems, participants explored how innovation, collaboration and preparedness can help strengthen the resilience of Europe’s seed sector and food systems.

Policy developments featured prominently throughout the programme of the Congress. Experts and industry representatives exchanged views on the implementation of the EU framework for New Genomic Techniques (NGTs), ongoing discussions around the Plant Reproductive Material (PRM) Regulation, Code of Conduct for the breeding sector, Community Plant Variety Rights and Omnibus X proposal, EU Protein Plan and Farm Saved Seed. Sessions across multiple crop sectors underscored the need for regulatory clarity and harmonisation to ensure that innovation can reach farmers while supporting competitiveness and sustainability.

Antonio Villaroel, Secretary General, ANOVE; Treasurer of Euroseeds; Co-Chair of Euroseeds CIPR; Francesca Garbato, Manager Intellectual Property and Legal Affairs, Euroseeds; Claudia Hallebach, General Counsel, Head of Global Legal and Intellectual Property, KWS; Chair of Euroseeds CIPR;

Christophe Gaillochet, Manager Plant Breeding Innovation, Euroseeds

Antonio Villaroel, Director General, ANOVE, Treasurer of Euroseeds, Co-Chair of Euroseeds CIPR

Szabi Ruthner, BASF; Chair of Euroseeds SWG Hybrid Cereals

Richard Wells, Senior Patent Attorney, Tropic; Olivier Lucas, Stretegic Partnership & Product Excellence Director, RAGT and Hervé Monconduit , Head of Patents, Bayer

The Congress also delivered valuable market intelligence and sector insights. Dedicated sessions examined developments across field and vegetalbe crop markets, while discussions on EU-UK trade relations, seed certification and international seed schemes highlighted the interconnected nature of Europe’s seed ecosystem. Participants shared experiences on navigating regulatory change, market volatility and evolving customer expectations in an increasingly complex global environment.

laudius Marondedze, Euroseeds Technical Manager Plant Health and Seed Trade, Euroseeds; Annette Kliemann, First Counsellor Agriculture and Food, Delegation of the European Union to the United Kingdom; Henry Bellshaw, UK Agriculture, Food and Drink Attaché for Southern and Eastern Europe, British Embassy, Madrid; Ed Barker, Head of Policy and External Affairs, AIC

The future of organic plant reproductive material and the new EU-funded project COLiBRI were also prominent part of the programme.

Clément Cardon , Public Affairs Manager, Euroseeds

A key highlight of Euroseeds2026 was the Seed of the Union 2026 keynote session, which focused on crisis preparedness and contingency planning for resilience. Industry leaders and external experts explored how businesses and organisations can strengthen their ability to anticipate and respond to disruption while maintaining competitiveness and delivering value to society. The discussions reinforced the importance of strategic foresight, cooperation and adaptability in an increasingly uncertain world.

Vicente Tejedo Tormo; Secretary for Agriculture, Water, Livestock and Fisheries

Garlich von Essen, Secretary General & CEO, Euroseeds; Raschad Al-Kahfaji, Director of FAO Brussels – Liaison Office with the European Union and Belgium; Antonio Villaroel, Secretary General ANOVE; Elli Tsiforou, Secretary General COPA-COGECA; Alexander Döring; Director General FEFAC; Jakob Grossehagenbrock, Crisis Managnement Lead, EY

Innovation remained at the centre of the Congress programme. Over two days, the InnovAction Stage, supported by Ernst and Young . provided innovative companies with a platform to showcase cutting-edge solutions for the seed sector. Participants presented technologies and services focusing particularly on seed treatment, seed enhancement, biological solutions, crop establishment and resilience. The stage once again demonstrated the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit driving the sector forward.

The InnovActor 2026 Award was a major highlight, with PEWAS crowned the winner for its groundbreaking contributions to seed innovation, with ENSEMO and SEEDFORWARD as notable runners-up. Moderated by Shawn Brook, the Ceremony Award developed into a panel discussion featuring the winner, the finalists and the last year’s winner phenolytics, reflecting on the role of innovation in agriculture and its future trajectory.

Dr. Birgit Mitter, Co-Founder of Ensemo; Winner of the InnovAction Stage 2026 Ivo Krpelan, CEO of PEWAS; Jacob Paul Rohn, CEO of SeedForward,

Jakob Grossehagenbrock, Crisis Managnement Lead, EY

Jury of the InnovAction Stage 2026 with the winner and runner-ups (from left to right): A big THANK-YOU to our distinguished jury members (from left to right): Remco Kwakman (Product Form Manager at Bejo), Ralf Tilcher and Klaus Schlünder (distinguished experts in the seed sector and in seed technology), Katrien Swerts (Executive Director at Rabo Investments), and Miguel Ángel Játiva (President and CEO de Gesvatec Sistemas S.L. y VINZAS AI S.L.)

Investing in future talent was another central theme. The Euroseeds NextGen Forum: Empowering the Next Generation in Plant Sciences brought together students, young researchers and industry leaders for an open exchange on career development, innovation and the future needs of the sector. Through panel discussions and networking opportunities, participants explored how stronger connections between academia and industry can help attract and develop the next generation of plant science professionals. The event concluded with the announcement of the NextGen Forum traineeship winners.

Yasmine Ambrogio, Manager Research Policy and Project Coordination, Euroseeds; Traineeship Winners of the NextGen Forum 2026 and Garlich von Essen, Secretary General and CEO of Euroseeds

Onur Çamili, Europe Head of Field Crop Seeds, Syngenta

Participants of the NextGen Forum with panelists

The Congress also celebrated excellence in education and plant breeding through the presentation of the UC Davis European Plant Breeding Academy Award, recognising outstanding achievement by the programme’s best student for the 2025/2026 academic year.

Judith Reese, Norddeutsche Pflanzenzucht Hans-Georg Lembke KG, award winner with Jovan Djordjevic, Director, UC Davis

As Euroseeds2026 came to a close, one message emerged consistently across discussions: Europe’s seed sector continues to demonstrate its capacity to adapt, innovate and collaborate in the face of change. Through strong partnerships, continued dialogue between policymakers and industry and sustained investment in research and talent, the sector is helping to build resilient agricultural systems capable of meeting future food, climate and sustainability challenges.

Euroseeds thanks all speakers, moderators, exhibitors, partners, sponsors and participants for contributing to a successful Congress and looks forward to welcoming the seed community again in 2027 in Paris, France.

Watch the Euroseeds2026 wrap-up video to revisit the highlights of the event!