October 2022 - Npos_2018 - lists.testbiotech.de

draft presentation for 16 November
by Christoph Then 27 Oct '22

27 Oct '22

these slides are meant to be presented in our workshop. comments welcome!

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MEP Workshop Invitation
by Johanna Eckhardt 26 Oct '22

26 Oct '22

Dear all, we just sent out the invitation for our patent workshop to all the MEPs from ENVI/AGRI. Please feel free to additionally contact the MEPs from your country and invite them to the workshop. Attached the invitation, below the text I sent. Best, Johanna Mag. Johanna ECKHARDT Project Coordination Tel. +43 680 21 26 343 <mailto:johanna.eckhardt@no-patents-on-seeds.org> johanna.eckhardt(a)no-patents-on-seeds.org NO PATENTS ON SEEDS! <http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/> www.no-patents-on-seeds.org <http://www.facebook.com/nopatentsonseeds> www.facebook.com/nopatentsonseeds <http://www.twitter.com/nopatentsonseed> www.twitter.com/nopatentsonseed From: Johanna Eckhardt <johanna.eckhardt(a)no-patents-on-seeds.org> Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2022 8:23 PM To: Subject: Workshop Patents on plant genes, 16 November Dear xxx, together with MEPs Maria Noichl (Social Democratic Party) & Tilly Metz (Green Group) we'd like to invite you to the online workshop "Patents on plant genes - a lockdown for conventional plant breeding?" on Wednesday, 16 November 2022, 17h-19h. In the workshop, an overview is given on latest developments on seed patents in Europe by No Patents on Seeds!. Please find the detailed programme via this link: https://we.tl/t-oGVKb9ZL8B The EU Parliament has adopted several resolutions against patents on plants derived from conventional breeding. However, the European Patent Office (EPO) still continues to grant patents which comprise plants derived from conventional breeding methods. Just recently, the first patent was granted by the EPO under a new rule which is supposed to exclude patents on plants and animals derived from conventional breeding (Rule 28(2), European Patent Convention, EPC), but apparently opens several loopholes. You can register to the workshop by replying to this email. You will then receive a link to participate at the Zoom meeting. Looking forward to an interesting discussion. Best regards, Johanna Eckhardt Mag. Johanna ECKHARDT Project Coordination Tel. +43 680 21 26 343 <mailto:johanna.eckhardt@no-patents-on-seeds.org> johanna.eckhardt(a)no-patents-on-seeds.org NO PATENTS ON SEEDS! <http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/> www.no-patents-on-seeds.org <http://www.facebook.com/nopatentsonseeds> www.facebook.com/nopatentsonseeds <http://www.twitter.com/nopatentsonseed> www.twitter.com/nopatentsonseed

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good news on the severed broccoli EP1597965
by Christoph Then 25 Oct '22

25 Oct '22

it looks like Seminis is not longer interested and will not attend the public hearing ... 😁

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patent granted on lettuce which concerns more than 120 varieties
by Christoph Then 25 Oct '22

25 Oct '22

this patent was mentioned in our report to be granted soon. It is the top 1 in the pinto database. it was granted in August we will present this case in our workshop on 16 November at also may use it for public announcement.

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Update Austrian patent law
by ARCHE NOAH Katherine Dolan 25 Oct '22

25 Oct '22

Dear all, Today the Austrian Ministry started a four week public consultation<https://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/VHG/XXVII/ME/ME_00229/index.shtml> on changes to the Austrian patent law. The draft texts includes our demands on the patentability of seeds (see also attachment, but only in DE): · Extending the definition of essentially biological processes (EBP) to include "non-targeted mutagenesis and random genetic variations occurring in nature" as well as crossing and selection · Extending the definition of plants and animals to include the cells of plants and animals · Providing that plant patents don't apply to plants with the same specified trait if they result from EBP and the patented material was not used in the breeding process As you see, the draft effectively seeks to implement the demands of NPOS at the national level. While this will have very little direct impact, we hope it will give new momentum and urgency to the debate at European level, as it cements the Austrian position in law and means there is a "best practice" example that can be followed. The conservative party and industry are still sceptical, however. So it is not yet sure whether the draft will actually make it to parliament. The consultation runs until 21st November and negotiations within the coalition will take place again after that. Best, Katherine Katherine Dolan Team Saatgutpolitik / Seed Policy ARCHE NOAH Gesellschaft für die Erhaltung der Kulturpflanzenvielfalt und ihre Entwicklung Obere Straße 40, A-3553 Schiltern +43 (0)676 557 4408 katherine.dolan(a)arche-noah.at www.arche-noah.at<http://www.arche-noah.at> ZVR 907994719

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report German Government
by Christoph Then 20 Oct '22

20 Oct '22

To me it looks not very exciting - but we were waiting for it to plan final activities for this year. I am surprised they report a significant number on animal patents .. the Greens in the Bundestag have asked for a debate

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New report out by Global2000, FOEE, Arche Noah, IG Saatgut, CEO
by Nina Holland 20 Oct '22

20 Oct '22

Hello everyone, The report on patents and new biotech was published today in German and English. Thanks to the very hard work by the researcher, and by Global2000. See FOEE press release below. The German versions you'll find with Global2000 our tweet is here: https://twitter.com/corporateeurope/status/1583022933689085952 My tweet *in Dutch* is here: https://twitter.com/nina_holland/status/1583045160941678592 Great if you could do tweets in various languages to further spread this report. Best, Nina FRIENDS OF THE EARTH EUROPE / CORPORATE EUROPE OBSERVATORY / ARCHE NOAH / GLOBAL 2000 / IG SAATGUT / ARBEITERKAMMER WIEN Press release *** *EXPOSED: How biotech giants use patents and new GMOs to control the future of food* *Read the media briefing >>* bit.ly/Exposed-MediaBriefing <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2112&qid=39665> *Read the full report >>* bit.ly/Exposed-Report <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2113&qid=39665> *** Brussels, 20 October 2022 - Big global biotech corporations like Bayer and Corteva, which together already control 40% of the global seed market, are dangerously trying to reinforce their monopoly and threatening food security. A group of seed saving, environmental and consumer organisations reveals how these companies seek to increase their control over the future of food and farming by extensively patenting plants and developing a new generation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Global biotech leaders Bayer and Corteva (formerly Pioneer Dupont) move to patent plant genetic information that can occur both naturally or as a result of genetic modification - claiming all plants with those genetic traits as their “invention”. Such patents on plants, which have been controversial for decades [1], would restrict farmers’ access to seeds and impede breeders from developing urgently needed plants adaptable to extreme weather conditions, as both would have to ask for consent and pay fees to the biotech companies. Corteva has applied for some 1430 patents on new GMOs, while Bayer/Monsanto has applications for 119 patents. By claiming exclusive rights on their “inventions”, they directly contradict their lobbying claims that new GMOs are as safe as natural plants and that therefore the EU should exclude them from the safety checks and labelling requirements provided by the current GMO legislation. *Mute Schimpf, food campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe, said:* “/The big biotech’s strategy is to apply for wide patents that would also cover plants which naturally present the same genetic characteristics as the GMOs they engineered. They will be lining their pockets from farmers and plant breeders, who in turn will have a restricted access to what they can grow and work with. The EU patenting legislation needs to be reinforced so that real innovation can happen in the interest of sustainable food production, not corporate/ gain.” For instance, Corteva holds a patent for a process modifying the genome of a cell using the CRISPR technique [2] and claims the intellectual property rights to any cells, seeds and plants that include the same genetic information, whether in broccoli, maize, soy, rice, wheat, cotton, barley or sunflower. The organisations publishing the briefing call for decision makers to safeguard food crops from being patented and stop the current abuse of the European patenting regulations. They also demand that all GMOs, old and new, be properly regulated with premarket authorisation, labelling and safety checks to protect human health and the environment. ENDS *** *For more information, please contact:* Mute Schimpf, food and farming campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe: mute.schimpf(a)foeeurope.org <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2114&qid=39665>, +32 475 70 34 75 Gaëlle Cau, communications officer at Friends of the Earth Europe: gaelle.cau(a)foeeurope.org <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2115&qid=39665> Nina Holland, researcher and campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory: nina.holland(a)corporateeurope.org <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2116&qid=39665> Katherine Dolan, Head of Seed Policy at Arche Noah: katherine.dolan(a)arche-noah.at <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2117&qid=39665>, +43 676 557 4408 for questions on patents *** *Notes* [1] Patents on plants have been controversial for decades and criticised on the basis that nature cannot be invented. Patents were designed to protect product innovations and provide intellectual property rights for new inventions, but patents on life differ from patents on machines as the licensing restrictions can also extend to the next generations, with one patent potentially covering hundreds of plant types. The extent of the monopoly rights granted by patents is in theory determined by the law, but in effect it is also influenced by the claims made by applicants in their patent application. [2] CRISPR-Cas is the most widely used genome-editing tool in plant breeding, mainly in the research and development phase. The plans of the EU Commission to deregulate certain new GMO techniques include plants modified with CRISPR-Cas. *** Friends of the Earth Europe is the largest grassroots environmental network in Europe, uniting more than 30 national organisations with thousands of local groups. We are the European arm of Friends of the Earth International. We represent the network at the heart of the European Union and campaign for sustainable solutions to benefit the planet, people and our future. Read more on our website <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2106&qid=39665>and follow us on Twitter <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2107&qid=39665> and Facebook <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2108&qid=39665> You have received this email because you are subscribed to receive press information from Friends of the Earth Europe. If you would like to unsubscribe from this list then please click here <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/unsubscribe?reset=1&jid=815&qid=…> If you would like to unsubscribe from all Friends of the Earth Europe lists then please click here <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/optout?reset=1&jid=815&qid=39665…> Friends of the Earth Europe is committed to protecting your privacy online and offline. Read our privacy policy <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2109&qid=39665>and more about our funders <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2110&qid=39665> Friends of the Earth Europe's identification number in the Transparency Register is: 9825553393-31. You can read our entry here. <https://civi.foeeurope.org/civicrm/mailing/url?u=2111&qid=39665> Thank you, Friends of the Earth Europe Rue d'Edimbourg 26 Brussels, 1050 Belgium -- Nina Holland, Corporate Europe Observatory Office phone: +32 (0)289 309 30 Twitter: @nina_holland  CEO is the only fully independent organisation in Europe constantly monitoring and challenging the influence of many corporate lobby groups. Help us fight the good fight and *DONATE <https://corporateeurope.org/en/recruiting-corporate-capture-big-tech>* to the cause! FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA Twitter - @corporateeurope Facebook - @CorporateEuropeObservatory Instagram - @corporateeurope LinkedIn - Corporate Europe Observatory Youtube - CEO | Corporate Europe Observatory

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Fwd: [New-gm-eur] Report out today: Exposed - How 2 biotech giants use patents and new GMOs to control the future of food
by Christoph Then 20 Oct '22

20 Oct '22

we were not involved as no patents on seeds coalition. looks interesting -------- Weitergeleitete Nachricht -------- Betreff: [New-gm-eur] Report out today: Exposed - How 2 biotech giants use patents and new GMOs to control the future of food Datum: Thu, 20 Oct 2022 08:58:44 +0200 Von: Brigitte Reisenberger <brigitte.reisenberger(a)global2000.at> An: new-gm-eur(a)lists.corporateeurope.org Dear all, our Patent-Report is out! https://www.global2000.at/sites/global/files/GLOBAL2000_NeueGentechnik_Pate… /Our report looks at the race for patents against the backdrop of proposed changes to GM regulations in the European Union for new GM techniques. It explores the implications for farmers, plant breeders and the wider food chain, and calls for a new approach to protecting genetic diversity and ensuring agricultural resilience. The use of patents for new genetically modified organisms (GMOs) such as CRISPR/Cas has resulted in a small group of corporations controlling key aspects of the food system, with the biotech giant, Corteva Agriscience in pole position. Patents pose a threat to farmers and food producers, with patent applications already affecting dozens of plant varieties, giving corporations control over crops and seeds, limiting access to genetic diversity and threatening future food security. In some cases, the big biotech corporations are blurring the distinction between GMOs and conventional breeding techniques by patenting traits that can occur both natually or as a result of genetic engineering - claiming all plants with those traits as their “invention”. Yet the same corporations argue that new GMOs should be excluded from the European Union’s safety checks and labelling requirements for genetically modified food because, they claim, they are the same as natural plants. Our report warns that the patent rules are being abused and the consequences of exempting new GMOs from GM regulations could be dire for climate resilience and the future of our food./ --> FOE-E and CEO will release it today as well and will let you know as soon as it is launched in Brussels! This was a truely collective effort over the last months - big thanks to Friends of the Earth Europe, Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO), ARCHE NOAH, IG Saatgut – Interessensgemeinschaft für gentechnikfreie Saatgutarbeit, Arbeiterkammer Wien and GLOBAL 2000. The press release here in German: https://www.global2000.at/presse/patente-auf-gentechnik and first articles: https://orf.at/stories/3290292/ We were at CORTEVA in Parndorf, Austria yesterday with a huge maize and Patented/GMOs signs! See the *Video* here: https://twitter.com/global2000/status/1582959817978568704 Please RETWEET, Like, Comment and make noise :) More photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/global2000/sets/72177720297024353/ All best, Brigitte -- Mag.a Brigitte Reisenberger Campaignerin Landwirtschaft/Gentechnik -------------------------------------------------- Pickerl drauf! Neue Gentechnik im Essen regulieren und kennzeichnen. www.global2000.at/pickerl-auf-gentechnik -------------------------------------------------- mobil: +43 699 142000 69 mail:brigitte.reisenberger@global2000.at GLOBAL 2000 - Friends of the Earth Austria Neustiftgasse 36 / A-1070 Wien GLOBAL 2000 — Umwelt braucht Schutz.http://www.global2000.at/spenden

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Dutch ministry understanding of patentabiltiy new GMO
by Nina Holland 18 Oct '22

18 Oct '22

Hello, In the Netherlands, the Dutch agri ministry is undertaking a survey among 'stakeholders' to see how to get New GM accepted for 'agro-ecology'. See below how he interpretes the situation regarding patents. He thinks NGT crops will not get patented as they would be "essentially biological". He is a junior guy at the ministry and he's probably just misinformed. I don't know if you addressed this issue when you had the meeting with the Duthc ministry. If so, what was their understanding? -------- Oorspronkelijke bericht -------- Onderwerp: RE: Update on NGTs Datum: 2022-10-18 15:58 Afzender: Heijdens, C.A. (Cédric) <c.a.heijdens(a)minlnv.nl> Ontvanger: "'tobia(a)aseed.net'" <tobia(a)aseed.net> Hi Tobia, Here is the article from the UPOV convention that contains the farmers exemption (Article 15.2) which is applicable in the EU. Regarding patenting the idea of the new legislation is that the NGT crops will not be GMOs, *since they are equivalent to conventionally bred** **varieties. I assumed that this means they cannot be patented because** **they could be made by an essentially biological process.* Otherwise a breeder who does use biological processes could start to infringe a patent, avoiding this was the whole point of this exception, but now I am not completely sure anymore if this is the way they interpretate it. Anyway the patenting of genes for use in a crossable species is not possible according to the EPO. I have told my colleague at the ministry of infrastructure who does the stakeholder management that you would be open to discuss the topic. For upcoming stakeholder events we will contact you, but I do not know when that will be the case. Yes you can share my email with them, I am looking forward to reading their positions! Kind regards, Cedric Van: tobia(a)aseed.net <tobia(a)aseed.net> Verzonden: dinsdag 18 oktober 2022 15:17 Aan: Heijdens, C.A. (Cédric) <c.a.heijdens(a)minlnv.nl> Onderwerp: Re: Update on NGTs Hi Cédric Thanks again. A couple of requests for further detail to make things clear. Any news on a ministry visit? For the EPO is this the evidence you refer to this? The Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office adopted a dynamic interpretation of the exception to patentability under Article 53(b) of the European Patent Convention (EPC) and held that the non-patentability of essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals also extends to plant or animal products that are exclusively obtained by means of an essentially biological process. Are you saying that all NGTs are being classified as essentially biological processes and therefore and plant/animal products made by these techniques cannot be patented? Secondly, we have not been able to find on the link that you shared with us, on plant breeders rights, the legislated exemption of small-scale farmers to have free access to seeds and the rights to reproduce, re-use, multiply and even sell. Finally, the master students have submitted the essays on their position on whether seed made from NGTs should be legislated/regulated as GMOs. Can I give the OK to share your e-mail with them and e-mail their positions? This would be empowering for them! There's also a real mix of positions not aligning 100% with ours. Best wishes, Tobia H

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! new KWS patent granted /update on activities
by Christoph Then 17 Oct '22

17 Oct '22

dear all I am just about to to some research on patents of KWS. One interesting result (which was brought up by our patent research in September already): EP3380618 (applied in 2016) was granted in August. claimed is cold tolerant maize derived from conventional breeding, all plants inheriting the specific genes are part of the invention. I think this example nicely shows the relevance of KWS, of 'gene patents'. so let us go for KWS in December. Georg already found a farmer driving a truck .. some further updates I did get no information on the planned meeting of the German government (end of September) - I try to do further research I have to travel Tuesday and Wednesday, back on the desk on Thursday. cheers Christoph

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