Plants or animals exclusively obtained by means of an essential biological process patents will not be granted by EPO. The EPO’s new ruling offers clarity on product and further defines “the new variety” developed through breeding, which is an essential biological process. But this is not a subject matter patent in IPR laws.

National Seed Association of India (NSAI) Executive Director, Dr Kalyan Goswami said that the decision allows breeders to continue their regular breeding work, based on crossing and selection without worrying about access to genetic diversity and traits produced both biotechnological and conventional breeding process.

National Seed Association of India, President, Mr. M Prabhakar Rao said that the ESA (European Seed Association) has been leading the way against an overly restrictive patent regime that denies farmers and breeders any rights or freedom in creating new varieties using natural / biological methods.

And the Indian Patents Act, 1970 clearly states that genes used for developing Genetically Modified traits can be patented under Indian law to the extent of identification, isolation, characterization, insertion process, and detection of the gene or its components which cause modification of gene expression by genetic engineering.

The Author is a Patent Specialist from MR Technollect Solutions (www.MRTechnollect.com)