Hamburg, Germany
May 6, 2022

Over 100 breeders, lawyers and IP experts from over 20 countries met in Cologne, Germany to discuss the latest challenges in IP protection for plants and how to increase the enforcement of the rights worldwide.

Essentially Derived Varieties (EDV), the key role of China on Intellectual Property (IP) matters, and new market opportunities with Cannabis, were just part of the vogue subjects discussed during three days at CIOPORA’s 61th Annual General Meeting (AGM), one of the most important instances to learn and know about the last trends of breeders’ innovations and Intellectual Property protection.  

After two years without the possibility to join in-person due to Corona regulations, over 100 breeders, lawyers and IP experts from over 20 countries gathered in Cologne, Germany to discuss the latest challenges on IP protection for plants and how to increase the enforcement of the rights worldwide.

“I am delighted with the enthusiasm of our members to be part of the first after-Corona CIOPORA AGM. More than 100 like-minded people came together in Cologne and were provides not only with useful information about IP Protection but also many networking possibilities,” says the Secretary General of CIOPORA, Dr. Edgar Krieger.

The three days journey started with The CIOPORA Academy, a full day of lectures about IP, Enforcement, PVR, among others. During the morning of the second day, the attendees had the opportunity to discuss in small thematic groups the main concerns of different sectors such as Cut Roses, Fruit and Ornamental Flowers.

In the afternoon, an internal discussion took place between the members of the association in which they gave the green light for further work on the creation of a Breeders' Enforcement Agency (B.E.A.). “The idea is to establish and offer highly qualified enforcement services to breeders; working with well-qualified parties to ensure breeders have access to consistent, and pragmatic support in the enforcement of their IP Rights,” says Dr. Krieger.

The AGM 2022 ended with an IP & Enforcement Symposium with 11 speakers from different countries addressing key core issues for the industry like Enforcement, New Breeding Techniques, IP Development in China and the USA, Plant Variety Rights in New Zeland, and many more.  

CIOPORA aims to ensure that Plant Breeders’ Rights are fair, effective and enforceable, enabling breeders to develop new varieties that are able to cope with a changing environment and ensure sustainably produced products for an ever-growing population.

Website: http://www.ciopora.org

Published: May 6, 2022