News April 2011
Breeders Trust
Breeders Trust promotes interests in the field of plant breeders’ rights on behalf of seven large seed potato trading companies in north west Europe. This is a non-competitive activity because breeders are statutorily entitled to compensation.
Plant breeders’ rights are laid down in a well-considered act. A lot of thought has been given to ways of promoting innovation via legislation. The law provides the minimum protection that is needed to promote innovation in breeding new varieties and at the same time it ensures that competition is not entirely precluded. Anyone may use a variety protected by plant breeders’ rights to develop new (even better) varieties.
An example: thirty years ago it was quite customary for a farmer to harvest 4 tons of wheat and 35 tons of ware potatoes per hectare. Improved cultivation techniques and above all the use of better varieties have since then more than doubled yields, and on top of that varieties have become far better suited to the purposes for which they are grown. The growth of the global population and increasing prosperity has caused a tremendous rise in the demand for food. Food security has become a crucial factor. And varietal innovation has consequently become an absolute must for ensuring sufficient food to feed that growing global population now and in the future.
Breeders Trust promotes breeders’ interests. Breeders invest millions of euros in searching for new varieties with improved properties. It may take up to ten years for a new variety to be found good enough to be officially registered and sold on the market. Such tremendous investments can only be made if the “inventor” is adequately compensated. Illegal copying – plagiarism - is fatal for innovation, which is why plant breeders’ rights were introduced. Breeders Trust helps governments to enforce those rights throughout Europe.
Equally important is that Breeders Trust also informs all the relevant links in the potato chain of the great advantages – for both farmers and the potato industry as a whole - of using seed potatoes protected by plant breeders’ rights. And we explain that it is only fair for the breeders to receive a reasonable licence fee.
For more information visit www.breederstrust.eu.
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