Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116Plant Breeders’ Rights PLANT Breeders’ Rights (PBR) does not often make headlines in this country. But when a Moose Jaw area farmer agreed earlier this year to pay a $150,000 penalty for unauthorized sales of two protected seed varieties, people within and outside the industry took notice. This past February, Harvey Marcil of Pasqua Farms agreed to pay a $150,000 settlement to SeCan for the unauthorized sale of CDC Bethune flax and AC Strongfield durum. Marcil also agreed to refrain from selling the two varieties without proper authorization. Distribution rights for the two PBR-protected varieties are held by SeCan, one of the country’s leading seed distribution companies. Todd Hyra, SeCan’s business manager for Western Canada, says the case was significant for a number of reasons, first and foremost because of the large dollar figure attached to it. The largest previous settlement involving the illegal sales of SeCan genetics was a $130,000 agreement that was reached in 2013. “This [recent] one was important because it was large enough to make people notice and allowed people to understand the gravity of the situation and that [these actions] can result in significant damages,” he says. Hyra stresses the recent case was also important because it helped to educate people about the importance of plant breed- ers’ rights to the seed industry and what the consequences can be when growers don’t follow the rules. “It’s important not just to have the people who are not follow- ing the rules [know] but also the people who are following the rules and let them know they’re doing the right thing and we’re taking to task the people who are infringing on plant breeders’ rights,” he says. “If there’s no examples of ramifications for infringement then people just think they can get away with it and it gets to be habit.” New Legislation Plant breeders’ rights have received increased attention within the seed industry this past year with the recent adoption of PBR ’91. The new federal legislation was adopted Feb. 27, 2015 and is designed to protect the abilities of breeders to produce, repro- duce, clean and sell PBR-protected seed varieties. All new varieties submitted for PBR will be protected by the new legislation while all varieties granted protection prior to last year continue to be protected under the original PBR Act. Lorne Hadley, executive director of the Canadian Plant Tech- nology Agency, says one of the primary reasons the new legisla- tion was adopted was to bring Canada in line with international plant breeder rights. Because Canada didn’t have the same PBR standards as some of its counterparts, many foreign companies and breeding programs were unwilling to share their knowledge and products with Canadian interests, he says. While some within the seed industry have suggested the new legislation is an attempt to sell more certified seed, Hadley says that isn’t the case. He says PBR ’91 is in place to ensure buyers’ purchase seed from a legitimate seller. “There’s no reason to be apologetic about being the one who developed a new variety,” he says. “If [producers] want improved varieties, one way or another they’re going to have to pay. It’s that simple. As diseases change and as market requirements change and higher yields are needed…it takes time and money to develop those new varieties.” Plant breeders’ rights have come into focus this past year as a result of new federal legislation. We examine what this legislation and plant breeders’ rights mean for the seed industry. COURT CASE HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF PBR 24 www.seed.ab.ca | Advancing Seed in Alberta