North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["loneroc" <loneroc@mwt.net>]

Heron,

After reading the answers others gave to your patent enforcement question, I
developed small qualms about avoidance of royalty payments to some of the
public breeding programs.  I do want to see land grant institutions continue
their breeding programs.  I quickly squelched those pang of conscience,
however.  The patenting process has led, in many cases, to massive private
enrichment (both corporate and academic) at the expense of the public
pocketbook and it is part of a system that has resulted in an impoverishment
of agricultural diversity rather than the reverse.  Seems to me that the
problem of funding such worthwhile horticultural endeavors is to provide
adequate funds for institutions doing the work.  If political forces whose
ideological bent to privatize the entire public realm refuse to pony up the
dough, then the answer is to vote 'em out of office, rather than to depend
on the 'incentive' of patent protection.  Defunding of scientific research
is bundled with a bunch of other political positions:  Opinions on any given
political issue are not randomly distributed, but rather come in 'packets'.

Plant patenting is part of an agricultural model that leads to less
diversity, not more.  It seems to be the antithesis of one of the principal
goals of NAFEX: the protection of plant diversity.  Heron, the plant and
animal patent system and the Seed Savers Exchange represent two
fundamentally opposing world views, with the SSE existing merely to support
horticultural hobbyists under current circumstances.  If you ever want SSE
and the sort of agriculture that goes along with its model to be more than
'dilettantism, buddy, you gotta risk the potential creation of a
'Honeycrisp' every once in a while.

A computer analogy might be Wikipedia or 'Linux', though Bill Gates is
pretty cool, and even admirable as robber barons go. (Perhaps 'trust' as in
Standard Oil Trust, is fairer, and more on the money.)  But Microsoft is not
the only way.

Steve H., Lone Rock, WI


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Heron Breen" <breen@fedcoseeds.com>
To: <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2006 10:17 PM
Subject: [NAFEX] Moral and Legal Patent Quandries


> To Everyone reading,
> I have been mulling over a few moral questions about patent violations
recently,
> but not the ones you'd think. Not a personal urge to propagate a plant on
the sly,
> or deep thoughts about the ethics of patent laws themselves in the greater
> metaphysical sense. In a real life scenario sense, I guess.
>  What does one do when one knows someone or a business that is knowingly
(does that
> matter?) violating a plant patent via propagation and sales? Do "we" have
an
> obligation to play the role of police upon others if we know they are
putting one
> over? Many of us have friends, family, that may do something moderately
(sometimes
> worse) illicit, and most of us live and let live...Do any of you feel
strongly one
> way or the other about personally applying the plant patent laws? If not,
why not?
> If so, any suggestions as to how to approach the problem?
>  This may seem mundane, but in the "business" of plants, there are often
gray, if
> not shady, areas. One I have wondered about was the topworking of existing
fruit
> trees with a patented variety, with intention to sell the resulting fruit
> commercially. This is happening at a slow but steady pace in existing
orchards all
> over the Northeast (and probably elsewhere). Any thoughts?
>  Here's a fictional example of another quandry: a wholesale nursery stock
grower
> who sells to various retail outlets is propagating maybe both ornamental
and fruit
> patented plants without permission. This grower is then selling these to
retail
> outlets, but with the retail outlets' full knowledge. Maybe these retail
outlets
> are also supplying the wholesale grower with patented propagation material
so the
> wholesaler can grow their requested cultivars in specific amounts. Neither
> wholesaler or retailed in paying royalties. The retailers may also be
hiding these
> illegal sales within sales of plants of the same cultivars that they
bought and
> sold legitimately. You know the involvement of both parties. Maybe you
even know
> personally some of the parties involved. Would you do anything about it?
> Maybe you know other situations  that seem vague or gray or shady
concerning patent
> laws. I'd like to hear what others have been wondering about, too.
>  A full spectrum of opinions welcome!
> Heron Breen
> zone 4, Maine
>
>
>
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