Plant Breeders’ Rights legislation in the EU implementing the Treaty and the UPOV 1991 Convention in a mutually supportive manner

EU Regulation 2100/94 of 1994 sets out the EU plant variety protection system following the principles of the UPOV 1991 Convention. The objective is to provide a balanced IP framework for protecting plant varieties, which stimulates the creation of new varieties of plants for the benefit of farmers and the society at large. The core components of the system, which ensure the mutually supportive implementation of the Treaty and the UPOV Convention, are the scope of the right (article 13 of the EU Regulation) and the exceptions to the right (articles 14 and 15 of the EU Regulation). These exceptions ensure that farmers, especially smallholder farmers, can continue their practices of seed saving. One key outcome of the system is the number of varieties available for farmers on the EU market, adding up to around 40,000 varieties of agricultural and vegetable species, of which around 20,000 are protected; around 3,500 new varieties are released every year. All these varieties contribute to farmers’ choices; where the variety is not or no longer protected, farmers are free to save, use, exchange and sell farm-saved seed of those varieties subject to national law.