The Canadian Wheat Board foresees big problems if plant breeders gain the right to collect royalties on harvested grain.
Breeders are now entitled to collect royalties from the sale of protected seed, but the seed industry wants that right extended to include harvested material in the event royalties could not be collected at the time protected seed was sold.
The proposed change could cause a “commercial nightmare,” said CWB director Art Macklin, noting the potential for costly delays in grain shipments.
He also suggested it could make the board liable for
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“It could cause an awful lot of problems in terms of commercial transactions if, in fact, you have to somehow, as the purchaser of the harvested product, prove that it was grown from seed that the royalty was paid on.”
In a March 1 submission to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, board president Adrian Measner said the CWB markets roughly
20 million tonnes of wheat and barley a year.
He translated that into 500,000 truck deliveries to western primary elevators and said the number doubles when non-board grains
are taken into account.
“Primary elevator operators are not in a position to know whether the grain delivered in every truck was produced from seed obtained through unauthorized means,” Measner wrote.
“The same is true for those taking delivery further down the supply chain as the grain changes hands through to the final customer.”
In situations where breeders’ rights have been clearly violated, breeders should have the opportunity to exercise their rights, he wrote.
“However, the grain company or marketer who unknowingly took delivery of that grain should not be liable for any costs or be restricted in their ability to handle or market the grain. Once harvested grain has been delivered and commingled, breeders’ rights cannot be exercised on the entire affected
inventory.”
Grant Watson, a senior adviser
for the CFIA’s plant production division, suggested the need to chase after royalties on harvested crop would be “the exception rather than the norm.”
