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Linda |
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Origin |
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Breaded by Europlant (Germany) since 1974.
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Characteristics |
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Oval size with yellow meat and yellow skin.
High resistance to diseases and popular among
organic farmers.
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Royalties
requested
by breeder |
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Yes.
Europlant assigned the rights (Plant Breeders'
Rights (PBR)) to maintain and collect royalties
from the marketing for 30 years in 1974.
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Registered
for legal
distribution |
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Yes. Registered by Europlant, Germany.
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Other
One month prior to the expiration of the PBR
certificate in December 2004, Europlant ceased
maintenance of the variety, even though its
registration on the national list was valid until
2009. This means that no one else could take over
maintenance of the variety, meaning Europlant had
the only rights to produce the variety. The move
was constructed in such a way that Linda was de-
listed.
Farmers have generated a lot of noice in media
protested against the de-listing. At the last
minute (the deadline was the 30 June 2005), the
German authorities have given Linda a two-year
extension on its use. But thereafter Linda might
be de-registered and forbidden to cultivate.
Europlant for its part has retorted that people
are making a lot of noise not because they want
to keep Linda alive but because they want to grow
potatoes without paying royalties on seeds.
www.grain.org, ”Seed laws in Europe: locking farmers out”
by Guy Kastler |
