b'PROTECTING INNOVATIONA Global Focus on Seed Innovationsand IP Will Feed the WorldCONTINUING FOCUS ONseed innovations isof asexually reproduced plants opened up new oppor-an ongoing effort to feed a hungry planet roughlytunities for the agricultural industry and has expanded 7.25 billion people today forecasted to grow to 10the scope of protection provided by PVPO to over 200 billion by 2050. This is a daunting challenge with ourspecies of plants. Sexually reproduced varieties still limited resources of arable land, potable water, nutrientaccount for more than 86% of the applications received availability and know-how. by PVPO, followed by 8% for tuber propagated varie-Todays plant breeders and scientists have done anties and 6% for asexually reproduced varieties but these admirable job of moving the needle of on-farm yieldshave been growing. The top five crops received by ELOY CORONA contributions from breeding efforts. In the past it wasPVPO for protection are soybean, corn, wheat, potatois the executiveconsidered that breeding efforts contributed 50% toand lettuce.director of the Seedon-farm yields as compared to environment and agro- The U.S. also has other types of intellectual property Innovation andnomic practices. A fairly recent study now pegs that atthat incentivize plant breeders to continue their impor-Protection Alliance70%, which makes sense with all the efforts at breedingtant work that is administered by the U.S. Patent and (SIPA). for disease, pest and climatic tolerances into new varie- Trademark Office (USPTO). Utility patents, plant patents, ties and hybrids not to mention the yield genes andtrademarks and copyrights are other mechanisms that quality traits being developed. incentivize breeders and seed companies to continue to None of this would have happened if global inter- invest 8-30% of revenues into new seed innovations.est hadnt introduced a set of guidelines to encour- However, the U.S. is only a small part of a global age more investment into plant breeding. This beganeffort working at driving seed innovations via educa-in Paris around 1961 with the implementation of thetion and outreach of the benefits of these intellectual International Union for the Protection of New Varietiesproperty(IP) systems incentivizing plant breeders, sci-of Plants (UPOV) in Geneva. There have been severalentists and seed companies to grow at an 8.1% CAGR.revisions in 1972, 1978 and 1991. As UPOVs websiteAs an example, there are UPOV implementa-states, UPOVs mission is to provide and promote antions around the world at the state or organization effective system of plant variety protection, with thelevel such as the European Community Plant Variety aim of encouraging the development of new varieties ofOffice(CPVO), the South African Registrar for Plant plants, for the benefit of society.Breeder Rights or the Chinese Division for PVP Today in a global seed sector valued at aroundExamination, Development Center of Science and $48-63 billion and growing at an 8.1% CAGR, there areTechnology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.17 countries bound by the UPOV78 convention andAlong these efforts you have seed trade organi-approximately 60 states and two organizations (EU27 &zations that focus on consumer and policy outreach AIPO17) bound by UPOV91. All providing a frameworkefforts to harmonize implementations, mediate issues for a country implementation of Plant Breeders Rights. and educational outreach to growers and consum-In the U.S., this is implemented as Plant Varietyers. These groups include our own American Seed Protection certificates as administered by theTrade Association, Seed Innovation Protection Alliance, USDA Plant Variety Protection Office (PVPO). TheSeeds Canada, International Seed Federation, Seeds Commissioner of the USDA PVPO, Jeff Haynes, esti- of America Association, Euroseeds, Anti Infringement mates over 300 PVP certificates have been issued inBureau, Breeders Trust and Asia and Pacific Seed 2022 for new varieties of sexually reproduced, tuberAssociation to name a few.propagated, and asexually reproduced plants. TheseMany of these organizations work with integrated provide 20-25 years of protection to breeders or IPcommunication channels to assure harmonious imple-owners. The Plant Variety Protection Regulations werementation without trade implications. revised and published on January 6, 2020, to addAll working together to keep feeding the goose that asexually reproduced plants to the PVPO. The additionlaid the golden egg needed to feed a hungry planet!SW94/ SEEDWORLD.COMINTERNATIONAL EDITION 2022'