Alexandria, Virginia
February 7, 2002

Where will valuable information, high-level speakers, history, and Old World charm come together?

The American Seed Trade Association’s (ASTA’s) 119th Annual Convention in Boston, Mass., June 23-26, 2002, will have it all. The meeting, “One if by Land, Two if by Seed,” will shed light from Boston’s Old North Church on compelling issues that affect the entire seed industry. Such issues will cover domestic and international policies related to biotech seed, initiatives on “invasive” plant species, relevance of trade agreements on seed distribution, and innovative business strategies to increase product or company value.

“This meeting will be about three Fs: forum, focus, and family,” said RB Halaby, meeting program
chair. “It will be a forum for continuing education. It will focus on issues of industry-wide importance
that connect ASTA’s diverse membership. And it will be fun for the whole family since Boston is a
charming city with rich history and many attractions.”

• James Watson, Ph.D., co-discoverer of DNA's double helix, 1962 Nobel Prize winner, and author of several books on genetics, will kick off the meeting as the keynote speaker on Mon., June 24. This year coincides with the 50th anniversary of his Nobel discovery. In honor of this, he will re-discover the structure of DNA in his talk, describing the progress plant breeding has made since 1953, the year his breakthrough research occurred. A strong proponent of biotechnology, Watson will discuss the past, present, and promising future of genetic science, especially as it relates to seed.
• David Bossman, president and CEO of the American Feed Industry Association will discuss on
  June 25 some of the seed industry’s key customers: livestock and feed producers. The majority of all corn seed goes into feed production in the United States and many other types of seed are used for this purpose. AFIA represents nearly 75 percent of the commercial feed and pet food sold annually in the United States. It has nearly 700 members comprised of feed manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, animal health companies, equipment manufacturers, large integrated livestock and poultry producers, and firms providing other goods and services to the commercial animal food industry.
• Juan Enriquez, director of Harvard Business School's Life Science Project, will “catch the
  future” for attendees on June 26 with a summary of his book As the Future Catches You: How
  Genomics and Other Forces Are Changing Your Life, Your Work, Your Investments, Your World. He will discuss the age of the gene revolution and its impact on the seed industry as well as in daily life.  It will be a thrill to “catch” what Enriquez predicts for tomorrow. “Enriquez is a prophet of our times,” said ASTA President Drew Kinder. “His ideas resonate throughout the seed industry as he discusses genetics as the greatest single driver of the global economy. His book is fantastic!”

Halaby recommends Watson’s book The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of
the Structure of DNA. It is the real - as in "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" - story of this remarkable discovery. As Watson himself wrote, “Science seldom proceeds in the straightforward logical manner imagined by outsiders.”

For more information about ASTA’s 2002 Annual Convention, go to http://www.amseed.com/mtg_2002ac_index.asp. Online registration coming soon.

Founded in 1883, the American Seed Trade Association, headquartered in Alexandria, Va., is
one of the oldest trade organizations in the United States. Its membership consists of about 850
companies involved in seed production and distribution, plant breeding, and related industries
in North America. As an authority on plant germplasm, ASTA advocates science and policy
issues of industry importance. Its mission is to enhance the development and free movement of
quality seed worldwide.