asked the Minister of Agriculture what steps are being taken to encourage the production of seeds for agricultural crops and the breeding of new strains of plants in this country.

The home production of seeds for agricultural crops is encouraged mainly through the work of the Seed Production Committee and by the provision of technical advice to farmers through the National Agricultural Advisory Service. Work on the production of new strains of plants is assisted by grants on a considerable scale from public funds to a number of research institutes engaged in plant breeding.