Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services - PLANT BREEDERS RIGHTS LEGISLATION

LIMITS AND EXCEPTIONS TO RIGHTS OF A GRANT HOLDER
Other persons are free to:

Grow or use a protected variety for non- commercial purposes;

Use the plants or parts of the protected variety for human consumption or other non-propagating purposes; and

Use a protected variety for plant breeding.

Repeated use of a protected variety for commercial production of F1 hybrid seed without the authority of the holder of the rights is not permitted

WHY WE HAVE PLANT BREEDERS RIGHTS
The development of a new variety is usually a long and costly undertaking. By allowing breeders to control commercialization of the variety, the Plant Breeders' Rights gives them a chance to recoup costs and profit from the breeding investment. Without the legal protection of rights, breeders can loose control of the commercialization of new varieties to persons who did not contribute towards the breeding costs.

By providing an incentive to breeders, Plant Breeders' Rights encourage investment and effort into plant breeding in Kenya. The rights scheme also allows Kenyans access to internationally bred varieties which would not be availed to them without legal protection of these varieties. The result is that farmers gain access to an increased number and range of improved varieties. Plant Breeders' Rights therefore benefit not only the breeders, but also the public in general.

THE KINDS OF PLANTS IN THE PLANT BREEDERS RIGHTS SCHEME

Plant Breeders' Rights are presently available for varieties of any kind of plant other than algae and bacteria.

Note: In plant variety protection the word "variety" is not used in the sense of a "botanical variety" but is synonymous with "cultivar" or "cultivated variety".

CRITERIA USED TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY FOR PBRs
Who can apply?
Only the owner of a new variety is entitled to apply for a grant of PBRs. The owner will be the breeder or the discoverer of the variety, his/her employer or his/her successor in title. An application may however be made by an agent on behalf of the owner.

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