Plant breeders rights highlighted in new federal legislation

by SUSAN MANN

Updated rules to strengthen plant breeders’ intellectual property rights as part of sweeping legislative changes introduced in Ottawa Monday will include the ability for farmers to save and reuse their seeds.

Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says Bill C-18 (the Agricultural Growth Act) was introduced in the House of Commons and it’s “good news for Canadian producers because it will increase farmers’ access to new crop varieties, enhance trade opportunities and reduce the red tape burden.” He made the announcement during a press conference at Canterra Seeds in Winnipeg.

If the bill receives Royal Assent, some of the changes would be implemented almost immediately while others would be phased in or require regulatory amendments.

Among the changes are amendments to the Plant Breeders’ Rights Act to align it with the International Union for Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV ’91). The government’s changes to plant breeders’ rights legislation, proposed to be in place by Aug. 1 2014, will encourage increased plant breeding investment in Canada and encourage foreign breeders to sell their varieties to Canada’s farmers, who will benefit from improved access to innovative new varieties, Ritz says. At the same time the bill “enshrines farmers’ privilege when it comes to saving seeds.” That means farmers’ right to reuse and replant the seed personally saved from crops grown on their own land “is protected under UPOV ’91,” he says.

During a question period, Ritz says they don’t know how much investment will come into Canada as a result of the changes but “I know of a number of investments that are coming. I can’t talk about them yet until those announcements are made but we’re talking tens of millions of dollars.”

But not everyone is buying the government’s positive spin on the proposed changes to plant breeders’ rights. Ann Slater, National Farmers Union first vice-president (policy) and an Ontario farmer, says the federal government’s granting farmers the privilege to save seeds under UPOV ’91 is the result of concerns expressed by their organization for more than two years. The government’s changes to plant breeders’ rights will turn the customary practice farmers have of saving and reusing seeds as part of their normal farm activity into “privilege.”

And that privilege could easily be revoked at some time in the future, she notes. Among some of the other concerns the organization has is plant breeders’ ability to collect royalties are being extended to 20 years from 15 and seed companies will have the right to collect royalties at any point in the agriculture and food system. In a Nov. 15 press release, the farmers union called the move to align Canada’s rules with UPOV ’91 “another way for consolidated multinational agribusinesses to maximize the dollars they extract from farmers.”

Ritz says the new agricultural growth bill will “deliver new tools and better services to help Canada’s farmers grow their businesses.” It’s “designed to make it easier for industry to meet government requirements while also reducing administrative costs and improving program delivery efficiencies.”

The bill will modernize and streamline nine different statutes, seven that are administered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and two regulated by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Ritz says. In addition to the Plant Breeders Rights Act, some other acts being amended are the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act and the Farm Debt Mediation Act.

The overall agricultural growth bill addresses many important areas, including seed, feed, fertilizer, animal health, plant protection, plant breeding and farm finance. “Some of the acts we are amending date back to the 1950s and, of course, a lot has changed since then,” he says, noting the bill will bring existing legislation in line with new science, international standards used by Canada’s trading partners “and most importantly the everyday needs of Canada’s farmers and the agricultural sector overall.”

Some of the changes include:

• Giving CFIA the authority to consider foreign reviews, data and analyses during the approval or registration of new agricultural products.
• A new licensing and registration regime for animal feed and fertilizer operators and establishments. Ritz says the bill introduces the option to require licensing and registration for fertilizer and animal feed facilities that sell products across provincial or international borders. Currently feed and fertilizer products can only be registered on a product-by-product basis.
• CFIA inspectors will have stronger enforcement tools to promote compliance with federal requirements for interprovincial use of agricultural products. The new bill will enable CFIA to order non-compliant imported agricultural products immediately out of the country.
• Monetary penalties for infractions will be increased to up to $25,000.
• Stronger controls for agricultural products at the border.
• Requirements for more stringent record keeping to enhance safety.
• Making the Advance Payments Program more flexible and user-friendly for farmers. BF