2011 CIOPORA Chronicle - the 50th Anniversary Edition

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naging hts flowers and plants that appeal to the people, whether this is a grower, buyer or a consumer. Breeders need a return on investment by earning royalties by licensing their rights which in our industry are mainly known as plant breeders rights. Intellectual property also includes trademarks and utility patents. PBR encourages creativity while it also protects innovation.” Plant breeding requires patience and can take five, ten or for some crops even fifteen years. Petunia, for example, can be crossbred much faster than a rose or bulb flowers. “Speaking from my own experience in vegetable seeds and Chrysanthemum breeding, I know that huge amounts of seedlings are required with in the end, only a handful of varieties which enter and stay on the market as a cash crop.” The investments involved are enormous. It is often stated that breeding costs account for 15 to 25% of a company’s turnover. Leune finds it difficult to give definite figures. ”If you start a new breeding programme from scratch, it’s extremely difficult to back your investments. Once you discover a real market leader the balance between costs and earning can change quickly. That’s a problem because when starting breeding you have a clear focus but it is not always for sure that you will succeed in finding a bestseller “ Royalty percentages The royalty percentages vary greatly. ”It’s up to the breeder to decide who will obtain the license to propagate his varieties, in which countries and under which conditions. Prices are primarily set by RAI can rely on a team of specialists that knows the sector inside out and provides world wide services for the ornamental breeders. market influences. Breeders will always look at their competitors to determine the royalty percentage for novelties. If he is convinced that his product is better he’ll opt for higher royalties. A lower royalty level can be useful to open the doors of new markets. Royalties can fluctuate, with different levels on different continents. In India and China, for example, the prices on the domestic market are significantly lower and it’s impossible to come up with royalty levels in accordance with the European market. However, with the present’s global flower industry involving products shipped from one continent to another, it has become increasingly important to have a more or less equal royalty level to prevent false competition. More recently, the prices have levelled out and that’s good for the business.” Internationalisation RAI employs 29 people divided over four offices in ‘s-Gravenzande (NL, headquarters), Fort Myers (USA), Bogota and Tokyo. “In 1993 we entered into a strategic alliance with Yoder USA in North and South America allowing us to spread our wings overseas. Today, RAI offers the client worldwide coverage. “Most of our employees travel around the world to control licensees, non licensees, growers, wholesale markets, auctions and exhibitions. Here we have the 2 + 2 = 5 effect. Imagine a shipment of cuttings grown in Brazil, transported to Holland and exported to Italy with the final flowers ending on the Moscow market. In such cases, RAI has the possibility to call its colleagues in South America and Europe to check and combine the information, allowing better control.” RAI has a profound knowledge of horticulture. “We really understand plants, the market and the grower. We’ll never enter a greenhouse in a suit and tie, having earned a reputation as plant connoisseurs. Our competitors in the market, the lawyers, normally don’t visit the grower, and only send letters. Moreover, lawyers have an overall lack of product and market knowledge.” UPOV RAI manages royalties under the authority of the different UPOV (International Convention of the Protection of New Plant Varieties) acts, which according to Leune, need further improvements. “The last time UPOV was revised, was in 1991 when better protection of end products was achieved. UPOV currently has 68 member states of which 45 have acceded to the 91 Act. This means that 23 countries >>> CIOPORA Chronicle April 2011 | www.CIOPORA.org 37
PLA offers a wide range of varieties ... The Daisy Company ... to meet consumer demands for daisies ■ Daisies are one of the most popular classes of garden flowers ■ The daisy is the most reproduced floral symbol worldwide ■ PLA daisies are tested for grower and consumer performance ■ For full information on licenses and our open days in Barcelona contact PLA today GAZANIA BRACHYSCOME OSTEOSPERMUM ArgyrA nthEmum ® PLA is an international plant licensing organisation working with independent breeders to protect and promote a range of ornamental plant products. Our trial facilites in Spain allow us to assess and display new plant varieties every year during the spring season. If you need assistance with plant protection and marketing please contact us at the address below. PLA International ApS | Denmark | Phone +45 4822 9880 | www.pla-int.com
Page 1 and 2: March 2011 • www.ciopora.org The
Page 3 and 4: Your partner for sustainable growth
Page 5 and 6: April 2011 CIOPORA Chronicle 33 MEI
Page 7 and 8: About CIOPORA CIOPORA is the Intern
Page 9 and 10: Close relationships It is vital for
Page 11 and 12: Fleuroselect Nils Klemm, President
Page 13 and 14: Good relationship: Bilateral meetin
Page 15 and 16: Belgium The Belgian courts have rec
Page 17 and 18: Jurisdictions Furthermore, the cour
Page 19 and 20: the Working Group on Biochemical an
Page 21 and 22: Patents In the plant breeding world
Page 24 and 25: Patents their patent applications.
Page 26 and 27: Working Group The effective enforce
Page 28 and 29: Quo vadis? Breeders ask for clear a
Page 30 and 31: ISF On the occasion of CIOPORA’s
Page 32 and 33: Mexico 2007 Strassbourg, France 199
Page 34 and 35: Meilland Let’s get the facts stra
Page 36 and 37: AIPH AIPH, the International Associ
Page 40 and 41: RAI are still on the 78 Act includi
Page 42 and 43: Fides Netherlandsbased Fides, a lea
Page 44 and 45: Birthday greetings CIOPORA Germany
Page 46 and 47: the Calibrachoa colour mix Trixi®
Page 48 and 49: S.B. Talee S.B. Talee, a leading br
Page 50 and 51: EUCARPIA Breeders rights are a good
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