Canada
February 25, 2021

Yesterday, Seeds Canada members Alliance Seed and SeCan announced a $737,597 cash settlement of a joint Plant Breeders’ Rights (PBR) case, the largest settlement on a PBR case to date.

Alliance Seed, SeCan and one other seed distributor settled their case versus a large farming operation in southern Alberta. The case related to unauthorized advertisements, and sales of PBR protected barley and wheat varieties. These actions included the inclusion of infringing seed in custom seeding packages. The parties have agreed to compensation for royalties, legal and investigative costs, and a declaration there will be no additional unauthorized sales.

Seeds Canada welcomes the news of this settlement, which shows the value of Seeds Canada’s monitoring and enforcement services. The work of Seeds Canada’s IP division enabled three members to act together against a single significant infringer. Today’s news demonstrates the strength of collaborative investigations and the importance of enforcing prohibitions on illegitimate seed sales and inclusion custom seeding.

“This news strengthens the role of Seeds Canada services,” said Lorne Hadley, Director of Intellectual Property Protection. “We continue to work on behalf of our members and support their willingness to pursue special cases due to infringer or infringing use.”

Plant Breeders’ Rights enforcement and education are ongoing priorities for Seeds Canada. To learn more about how to support legitimate seed sales, please visit seeds-canada.ca.

For more information regarding Plant Breeders’ Rights, please visit PBRfacts.ca.

Published: February 25, 2021