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UPOV Council holds its thirty-first extraordinary session


Geneva, Switzerland
April 11, 2014

The Council of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) held its thirty-first extraordinary session on April 11, 2014.

Round-up of key developments:

Positive decision on the Draft ARIPO Protocol for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants

The Council took a positive decision on the conformity of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) Draft Protocol for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants with the provisions of the 1991 Act of the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV Convention). The Draft Protocol, once adopted with no changes and in force, would allow the Contracting States to the Protocol and ARIPO, in relation to the territories of the Contracting States bound by the Protocol, to deposit their instruments of accession to the UPOV Convention.

International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA)

The Council expressed its appreciation to the Governing Body of the ITPGRFA (GB) for the thanks the GB had offered to UPOV for the practical support UPOV had provided to the ITPGRFA and the Council confirmed its continuing commitment to mutual supportiveness. In response to an invitation by the GB to identify with the Secretary of the ITPGRFA and the Secretariat of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) possible areas of interrelations among the international instruments of the ITPGRFA, WIPO and UPOV, the Council decided to explore the idea of a joint publication on interrelated issues regarding innovation and plant genetic resources and other suitable initiatives.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Council agreed the answers to the following frequently asked questions:

  • Who can attend UPOV meetings?
  • What is UPOV?
  • What does UPOV do?
  • Who can attend UPOV meetings?
  • What is a plant variety?
  • Why do farmers and growers need new plant varieties?
  • Why is plant variety protection necessary?
  • How does plant variety protection work?
  • What are the requirements for protecting a new plant variety?
  • Why does UPOV require varieties to be uniform and stable; doesn’t that lead to a loss of diversity?
  • Can breeders use a protected variety in their breeding programs
  • Who can protect a plant variety?
  • Where do I apply for protection of a variety?

Launch of Advanced Distance Learning Courses

The following program was agreed for the launch of the advanced distance learning courses DL-305-1 “Administration of Plant Breeders’ Rights” and DL-305-2 “DUS Examination”:

February/March 2015      DL-305-1 (E, F, S)
April/May 2015                 DL-305-2 (E, F, S)

More detailed information concerning the course content and on-line registration will be provided on the UPOV website: http://www.upov.int/resource/en/training.html).

Test Guidelines

The Council welcomed the adoption by the Technical Committee of six new Guidelines for the Conduct of Tests for Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability (Test Guidelines) and nine revised Test Guidelines. UPOV has now developed 301 Test Guidelines, all of which are freely available on the UPOV website
(http://www.upov.int/test_guidelines/en/).

Experience of members of the Union in the Examination of New Plant Varieties

The Council noted that the number of genera and species for which members of the Union had indicated their practical experience in the examination of distinctness, uniformity and stability (DUS) had increased from 2,589 in 2013 to 3,305 in 2014 (+ 27.7%). The Council also noted that information on members of the Union with practical experience in DUS examination was freely accessible via the GENIE database.

Tribute to Mr. François Boulineau (France), Chairman of the Technical Working Party For Vegetables (TWV)

The Council expressed its condolences for the sad loss of Mr. François Boulineau, Chairman of the Technical Working Party for Vegetables (TWV), who had died on December 23, 2013. In addition to being Chairman of the TWV, Mr. Boulineau had brought great experience and expert knowledge to UPOV’s technical work and was a leading expert for a number of important UPOV Test Guidelines. The Council expressed its appreciation for the important contribution that Mr. Boulineau had made to UPOV.



More news from: UPOV (International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants)


Website: http://www.upov.int

Published: April 11, 2014

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