MALAYSIA PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION MALAYSIA

-ENGLISH VERSION ONLY-

Plant Breeders' Rights also called Plant Variety Protection (PVP), is a form of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). It is an exclusive right granted to breeders of new varieties to exploit their varieties and has features that are in common with patents for industrial inventions. Both forms of protection grant to their holders a form of exclusive right to pursue innovative activity.

PVP may also be compared with copyright, as PVP enables the reproduction (copying) of protected plant varieties to be constrained by the owner of the protected variety. PVP is an independent sui generis form of protection tailored for the purpose of the protection of new plant varieties. It has certain features that are common with other IPRs but have, at the same time, fundamental differences.

Since the early 19th century, in agriculture and forestry, the introduction of new varieties is an essential component to maintain and sustain good and high crop productivity and quality. New varieties are constantly being bred for higher yields, for better agronomic traits like taste, for resistance against pest or diseases, for tolerance to saline or drought conditions etc.

The Malaysian government has realized the importance of PVP for the development of the country. Malaysia, a member of World Trade Organization (WTO) and a signatory to the TRIPS Agreement, which under Article 27.3 (b), stipulates that member countries shall provide for the protection of plant varieties by a patent or by an effective sui generis system or by any combination thereof. As such, Malaysia is able to fulfill its obligation of Article 27.3 (b) for the TRIPS Agreement with the introduction of the PVP legislation.

With the PVP legislation, growers are in a better position to have access to new and improved varieties for commercial growing. Temperate flower growers in Malaysia, for example, are facing problem in getting new varieties from Netherlands and other countries which bred these varieties. The extension of rights to harvested material further complicates the issue. The objective of the Act is to provide for the protection of the rights of breeders of new plant varieties, and the recognition and protection of contribution made by farmers, local communities and indigenous people towards the creation of new plant varieties; to encourage investment in and development of the breeding of new plant varieties in both public and private sectors; and to provide for related matters.

The Department of Agriculture (DOA) has been registering fruit clones since the early 1930's and was officially as to be the National Registrar of Varieties in 1994 by the Ministry of Agriculture. The responsibility in implementing the PNPV Act 2004 has been entrusted to the DOA Malaysia.