Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Buckle Your Seatbelt: The Roundup Ready Patent Expires in 4 more years.
Mark your calendar for the fall of 2014, and prepare to sit back and watch what happens to the market for seed that carries the Roundup Ready gene. Monsanto’s patent on Roundup Ready genetics expires at that time, and the spring of 2015 could be an interesting time to see what happens to one of the most important developments in 20th Century agriculture.
Current federal law provides patent protection to Monsanto for Roundup Ready genetics for 20 years, but when that expires it could be “Katie bar the door” on what happens with the technology. RR beans and corn will be passé. Someone may try to create RR livestock and farmyard pets. Undoubtedly there will be a lot of seed companies offering their own brands because they did not want to sign Monsanto’s licensing agreements. Iowa State University law and tax specialist Roger McEowen says that will mean farmers will not have to pay the technology fee that has been charged for many years for products that are Roundup resistant.
But what about the RR2Y genetics? Those were released to the market and appear in 70 different varieties according to McEowen, who says there is not much difference in yield between the two, and if farmers have access to both, they would opt for the older technology because of the lower costs. But for some, or maybe many farmers, the big issue will be the ability to save soybeans for seed, and be able to plant their own Roundup Ready beans. Brown bag seed has been a rarity for quite few years because of Monsanto’s agreements for using their genetics. There could be a sea change, then again, maybe not. Time will tell.
What McEowen is concerned about is the big picture regarding sales of such soybeans overseas in markets that have controlled the importation of genetically modified seed. Those importation rules currently are strict, and because of the limited acceptance of RR seed, the genetic tests have to show purity. Will shipments of soybeans, some planted with brownbag seed, meet the genetic purity standards? If not, what happens to the cargo? Does it come back to the US for the crushing market? What will happen at the outbound port if testing shows increasing levels of something other than what European or Chinese inspectors will accept? So many questions, and 2015 provides so little time to get them answered. Fortunately, Monsanto has indicated it will continue its RR genetic registrations through 2021 to allow soybeans with pure RR genetics to enter foreign ports.
McEowen says Monsanto has allowed other seed companies using its licensed RR2Y genetics to continue using the RR technology for their own seed production. Pioneer decided against the licensing process, but plans to use the RR technology in combination with its other stacked traits. Will there be court battles that may cause farmers to mow down fields of soybeans? McEowen says that is doubtful, since Monsanto’s attitude so far has indicated any trade disruption will be minimal. One of the federal laws that Monsanto has at its disposal is the Plant Variety Protection Act, which could bar brownbag seed. However, McEowen says Monsanto has stated that farmers will be able to save seed from the 2014 crop to plant in 2015.
The benefit for farmers is the potential for more choices and lower prices for RR technology when the patent expires. Several federal laws seem to provide the ability for Monsanto to keep its hold on the technology, but the company has taken the attitude that the patent is expiring and it will work with other seed companies for the public use of the technology.
Summary:
The expiration of patent protection on Roundup Ready technology is only 4 years away, and apparently will offer an opportunity for farmers to save seed from RR soybeans and plant them the following year without the technology fee and the threat of lawsuits. Monsanto has indicated it will work with other seed companies for the use of the technology, and keep its registrations current in foreign markets. However, questions arise about the blending of the RR seed with brownbag seed that may result in less purity for soybeans entering foreign ports.
April 19 addendum:
Monsanto replied with the following information, providing two websites that provide information about the company policy and bullet points that summarize the policies. The websites detail the patent expiration and the initiative regarding international registration of the RR gene through 2021.
Here are the main points about the Roundup Ready patent expiration:
Monsanto is amending all Roundup Ready soybean trait licenses to extend through the final patent expiration. As a result, the last crop year for which Monsanto will collect royalties on the technology is 2014.
•Licensees have no obligation to destroy or return seed due to expiration of the Roundup Ready soybean trait licenses.
•Monsanto will not use variety patents against U.S. farmers who save varieties containing the Roundup Ready trait for planting on their own farms after expiration of the trait patent. Farmers should check with seed suppliers regarding the policy for seed varieties developed by other companies and contain the Roundup Ready trait.
•Monsanto will maintain full global regulatory support for this first-generation technology through 2021. This will allow grain from the 2014 crop to be sold and processed. We will continue to monitor and assess the planned use of this first-generation technology beyond 2021 and work with appropriate stakeholders on any extension of regulatory support that may be needed.
•Seed company licensees who choose to work with Genuity™ Roundup Ready 2 Yield technology will be able to continue to sell varieties with Roundup Ready after the patent expires. There is no need for them to stop selling Roundup Ready technology in order to sell the new trait.
•Universities will also be able to offer soybean varieties containing the Roundup Ready trait. A number of universities have been breeding with the Roundup Ready soybean trait for a number of years and they will be able to continue this both now and following expiration of the patent.
Posted by Stu Ellis on 04/13 at 12:00 AM | Permalink
Comments
Posted by: Colin at April 14, 2011 10:10AM
Thanks for an idea, you sparked at thought from a angle I hadn’t given thoguht to yet. Now lets see if I can do something with it.
Posted by: mikeross at April 24, 2011 7:07PM
For those interested in following the process of the patent expiration, Canada’s RR soybean patent expires this current year. Seed purchased for this spring is still covered under the agreement but for 2012 there would not be a trait agreement on the original RR trait so a grower could retain seed for 2013. Since the patent does not expire until mid summer this year, seed planted in 2011 is still covered by the agreement. Monsanto has done a good job positioning their RR2 trait to limit the brown bagging. Spring 2012 will be an intersting one to watch!