7 USC § 1611 - Illegal sales of uncertified seed

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t7/s1611"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "7 USC § 1611 - Illegal sales of uncertified seed"
title_number: 7
title_name: "AGRICULTURE"
section_number: "1611"
section_name: "Illegal sales of uncertified seed"
chapter_number: 37
chapter_name: "SEEDS"
subchapter_number: "V"
subchapter_name: "SALE OF UNCERTIFIED SEED OF PROTECTED VARIETY"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Aug. 9, 1939, ch. 615, title V, § 501, as added Pub. L. 91–577, title III, § 142(a), Dec. 24, 1970, 84 Stat. 1558; amended Pub. L. 97–98, title XI, § 1118, Dec. 22, 1981, 95 Stat. 1272.)"
---


# § 1611. Illegal sales of uncertified seed

7 U.S.C. 2321*Provided*

It shall be unlawful in the United States or in interstate or foreign commerce to sell or offer for sale or advertise, by variety name, seed not certified by an official seed certifying agency, when it is a variety for which a certificate of plant variety protection under the Plant Variety Protection Act [ et seq.] specifies sale only as a class of certified seed: , That seed from a certified lot may be labeled as to variety name when used in a mixture by, or with the approval of, the owners of the variety.

---

**Source Credit**: (Aug. 9, 1939, ch. 615, title V, § 501, as added Pub. L. 91–577, title III, § 142(a), Dec. 24, 1970, 84 Stat. 1558; amended Pub. L. 97–98, title XI, § 1118, Dec. 22, 1981, 95 Stat. 1272.)

## Editorial Notes

### References in Text

The Plant Variety Protection Act, referred to in text, is , , , which is classified principally to chapter 57 (§ 2321 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under  and Tables.

### Amendments

1981— substituted “sell or offer for sale or advertise, by variety name, seed” for “sell by variety name seed”, “certifying agency, when” for “certifying agency when”, and “owners of the variety” for “owner of the variety”.

## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date of 1981 Amendment

Amendment by  effective , see , set out as an Effective Date note under .

### Effective Date

Section effective , see , set out as a note under .