EU to curb seed patents

The patent industry is privatising European seeds, potentially endangering food security according to European seed producers.

Europe has a diverse seed industry with a long and hard-fought-for history, with hundreds of small breeders creating new varieties of cereals, vegetables, and legumes in Germany, the Netherlands, and France among other countries. These plant breeders adapt seeds to local environments through methods such as crossbreeding to improve desired traits like yield, disease resistance, and flavour. 

Agrochemical companies now own patents on 1,200 natural seed varieties

However, the number of patents on seeds are becoming more prevalent, as small breeders cannot freely plant or sell these seeds or use them for development without paying licensing fees to big corporations. Around 1,200 seed varieties that can be bred naturally are now covered by patents across Europe, as agrochemical companies claim to have created them through technical innovations.

Seed producers and farms face uncertainties

European seed producers and farms face legal uncertainty and a risk that their investments will not pay off. Frans Carree, an organic breeder at Dutch company De Bolster, is trying to develop a tomato resistant to the brown rugose fruit virus but faces over a dozen patent applications filed by multinationals such as BASF, Bayer, and Syngenta.

Michael Kock, former head of intellectual property at Syngenta, predicts a future in which ‘most new varieties coming into the market will be covered by patents.’ To address concerns about rising costs and new dependencies for farmers and breeders, the European Parliament is in the throws of banning the genetically modified seeds of companies like Syngenta.