Experts from Latin America and the European Union discussed important issues related to plant varietiesn
On 15 November 2022, experts from Latin America (LA) and the European Union participated as speakers in a virtual workshop on plant varieties organised by IP Key LA.
The event addressed issues related to the Convention of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV). This convention is the basis on which the European Union’s member states rely to promote plant breeding through the granting of an intellectual property right: the plant breeder’s right.
Leontino Taveira, in charge of technical affairs and regional development (Latin America and the Caribbean) of UPOV, commented on the characteristics and advantages of the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention.
Manuel Castro, Director of Inventions and New Technologies of the National Institute for the Defence of Competition and the Protection of Intellectual Property of Peru (INDECOPI), gave a presentation on Peru’s experience as a member of this agreement. It should be pointed out that Peru is the only country in South America to have acceded to the 1991 Act.
This was followed by a discussion on the breeder’s defence against infringement. Miguel Ángel Rapela, PhD in Agricultural and Forestry Sciences and academic director and professor of the Master’s Degree in Intellectual Property at the Austral University of Argentina, gave a presentation on the types of infringements and the principles of the legal defence of this right.
Antonio Villaroel, General Director of the Spanish National Association of Plant Breeders, discussed the role of the licence as an instrument for the prevention of infringements.
Finally, Pablo Trelles, technical secretary of INDECOPI’s Commission for Inventions and New Technologies, spoke about the defence of plant breeder’s rights against infringements in the Andean Community.
Francesco Mattina, President of the Community Plant Variety Office, was in charge of the welcoming remarks and the event’s conclusions.
Presentations:
- Peru’s experience with the UPOV Convention, Act of 1991. Manuel Castro - [PDF - 2.53MB]
- Enforcement of Plant Breeders’ Rights against Infringements in the Andean Community. Pablo Trelles - [PDF - 1.47MB]
- Role and Function of Licensing as an Instrument of Infringement Prevention. Antonio Villarroel - [PDF - 2.16MB]