The continuing patenting of seeds, conventional plant varieties and animal species leads to far-reaching expropriations of farmers and breeders: farmers are deprived of their rights to save their harvested seeds, and breeders are under strong limitations to use the patented seeds freely for further breeding.
The European Patent Office (EPO) has repeatedly broadened the scope of patentability and undermined existing restrictions, in the interest of multinational companies. Our food security is increasingly dependent on a few transnational chemical and biotechnological companies.
Now the European Patent Office deals with the basic question: Are conventional bred plants and animals patentable?

The Enlarged Board of Appeal of the EPO will use a patent on broccoli (EP 1069819) for a fundamental ruling, on whether or not conventional plants are patentable. The decission of the Enlarged Board of Appeal (case G2/07) will be binding for all other pending patent applications.

In a joint letter to the Enlarged Board of Appeal the Berne Declaration, Greenpeace, Swissaid, Misereor "Kein Patent auf Leben" and numerous farmers' organisations from around the globe restate their oposition to patents on conventional seeds and animals. For more information please visit the the coalition's website: www.no-patents-on-seeds.org

The coalition of NGOs and farmer's organisations have justified their demands with a juridical expert opinion written by Prof. Fritz Dolder (University of Basel) which is available here. A new report of the coalition shows the alarming trend of new patents on conventional plants and the possible desastrous consequences.