On November 15, the International Patent Planting Rights Application Platform was launched in China. PRISMA is the online application system of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), which was completed in January this year. It aims to facilitate breeders applying for variety rights protection in different countries and regions. “Our country joined this system in July this year, which provided a bridge for foreign applicants from domestic variety rights to apply abroad and also facilitated the introduction of good varieties abroad.” Zhou Yunlong, deputy director of the Seed Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, said .
By accessing this online tool, breeders in China can send application data to the Plant Variety Protection Office in different countries according to the prescribed format. Similarly, breeders in foreign countries can also use this system to apply for variety protection in China. So far PRISMA1.1 version of the use of members, including China, Argentina, Chile and other 16 countries, the use of PRISMA in China can apply for two varieties of lettuce and rose seed protection.
China promulgated the “Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Plant Variety Protection” in 1997 and joined UPOV on April 23, 1999, becoming the 39th member. The number of applications in 2016 was nearly 3,000, ranking first in the number of UPOV member countries’ annual applications. However, applications for variety rights totaling more than 20,000 items accounted for a relatively small number of applications from abroad, while domestic varieties applied less variety to foreign countries. The establishment of an international application platform for plant variety rights will provide a good platform for Chinese breeders to apply for overseas variety rights and foreign breeders to apply for variety rights in China.
At the same time, the Ministry of Agriculture Science and Technology Development Center has also signed the EU-China Plant Variety Protection Strategic Cooperation Agreement with the EU Plant Variety Protection Bureau, focusing on the establishment of plant variety protection system, admissibility review process, variety test technology research, demonstration and demonstration of new varieties In respect of the three-year cooperation and exchange.
