Vegetable Breeding Industry and Property Rights

Abstract

Plant genetics and breeding are long-term endeavor that require dedicated expertise and infrastructure plus substantial and stable funding. The development of new vegetable cultivars or breeding techniques requires time, effort and funding. Likewise, access to technology and to crop diversity remains essential for the development of vegetable cultivars. Vegetable breeding is characterised by continuous innovations and the development of new cultivars that meet the requirements of growers and consumers. The driving force behind this innovation is acquiring or increasing seed market share. However, breeding new vegetable cultivars requires high investments that can only be recouped if the breeding companies can commercialise the cultivar for a certain period. Intellectual property rights on cultivars are regarded by some in the private sector as the ultimate guardian of plant breeding entrepreneurs. They are viewed as the opportunity to control as many aspects of the invention as possible, thereby strangling the innovative capacity of the competition. As a result, a few multinationals dominate the global seed trade, while public sector plant breeding and local, small- and medium-size seed enterprises have a marginal role. Plant variety rights through patents may affect both vegetable diversity and the progress of plant breeding research, except within the company holding the patent. While obviously benefiting that company, it is a big step backwards for the plant breeding community and by extension, for horticulture itself. Some vegetable breeding programs were merged to reduce costs, which could lead to growers being dependent on a narrow genetic background that could contribute to biodiversity reduction and food insecurity. Access to “advanced” genetic resources is an important condition for a healthy and innovative vegetable breeding sub-sector and food security. We argued that the private sector relies on fundamental research and proof-of-concept demonstrations of feasibility from the public sector, and the public sector expects their discoveries to be expanded and implemented commercially by the private sector. Hence, we advocate effective and synergistic private-public partnerships for enhancing the use of vegetable diversity, accelerating its breeding and increasing genetic gains.