The Federal Plant Duties resistance, quality, or for processing. Varieties of some fruit Procedure for National Listing and Plant Breeders’ Rights: and ornamental species may be admitted to the NL on a National List Plant Breeders‘ Rights Variety Office Plant Breeders‘ Rights voluntary basis. The Plant Breeders’ Right is an exclusive right comparable Application at BSA Application at BSA The Bundessortenamt (Federal Plant Variety Office) is an inde­ to patents for technical inventions. The Plant Variety Pro- Control of Maintenance of varieties DUS-Testing: VCU-Testing: Value for DUS-Testing: Distinctness, Cultivation and Use of Distinctness, Uniformity, pendent senior federal authority under the supervision of the tection Act ensures that the ‘s work is protected by The renewal of National Listing or the privilege of main- Uniformity, Stability, crop, harvest or product Stability, Novelty, Variety Variety quality from harvest of Denomination German Ministry of Food and (BMEL). the concession of a private protection right, and therefore it taining Plant Breeders‘ Rights is possible only under the Denomination important agricultural promotes . On the basis of the Plant Variety condition that the variety remains uniform and stable. crops

The headquarters of the Bundessortenamt (BSA) is located Protection Act (SortG), all plant varieties of the plant king- Therefore the breeder must carry out systematic mainte- Trials at BSA and other stations, also abroad in Hanover. Its 7 testing stations are distributed throughout dom, with the exception of micro-organisms, can be applied nance breeding. The BSA is responsible for supervision. Report and decision Germany with about 410 ha of agricultural land in various for variety protection. A plant variety can be protected when Admission to the National List and to the EU Granting of Plant Breeders‘ cultivation and climatic regions. Approximately 7.000 sqm are it is new, distinct, uniform and stable (DUS) and when it is Registered and protected varieties Common Catalogue of Varieties Rights available for greenhouse cultivation. provided with a suitable variety denomination. Any breeder (BSA, status 1st July 2015) Control of maintenance of listed varieties Control of maintenance of or discoverer of a new plant variety can apply for Plant Bree- protected varieties President ders’ Rights (PBR). They provide that only the owner or his/ Species Registered Protected Division 1 Division 2 Division 3 her legal successor has the right to produce, market, export varieties varieties Conservation varieties Administration VCU-testing, DUS- Test Management or import reproductive material of a variety i.e. plants, parts Agricultural Species Conservation of biodiversity and protection of genetic resour- → Biostatistic, IT testing and Plant → Laboratory thereof and seeds. The use of a protected variety in order Cereals (incl. Maize) 765 153 ces has received broad public attention in the past years. To → Personnel Genetic Resources → Testing Stations Fodder Plants 907 260 → Budget, Controlling → Testing for Value of → Real Estate and Service to a new variety does not require authorisation from promote in-situ and on-farm conservation of plant genetic → Legal Affairs, Cultivation and Use for Management the holder of Plant Breeders’ Rights (breeder’s privilege). Oil and Fibre Plants 264 134 resources and their sustainable use, the Ordinance for the Organisation National Listing → Operational Safety Beets 354 1 → Variety → Testing for Distinctness, For a number of agricultural species farmers are authorised Registration of Conservation Varieties has been enacted. The Administration Uniformity and Stability for to use the product of their harvest as propagating material Potato 199 42 ordinance allows the registration of conservation varieties of Plant Breeders‘ Rights and (farmers’ privilege) provided that a fair compensation is paid Vine 128 73 agricultural species as well as conservation varieties and so- National Listing → Descriptive Variety Lists to the breeder. Other agricultural species – 19 called amateur varieties of vegetable species. , farm → Gene Banks Agricultural Species 2.617 682 yard and other varieties that are traditionally grown in their Directly responsible to the President: Admission to the National List region of origin and significant for the conservation of plant → Section P 1: National and International Variety and Seed Affairs, Coordination Admission to the National List (NL) is a pre-requisite for genetic resources can be accepted for inclusion in the national Centre for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture Horticultural Species → Section P 2: Communication, Biopatent-Monitoring, Quality Management marketing of propagating material of agricultural plant Vegetables 560 98 list as conservation varieties.

species, vegetable species and vines. The NL ensures that Ornamentals (incl. roses) – 612 Vegetable varieties with no intrinsic value for commercial crop only high quality seed is available. Varieties which are listed production can be registered as amateur varieties. Less strin- Woody ornamentals, forest trees – 84 in Germany as well as in other EU member states (Common gent testing requirements apply to such varieties. Only limited Fruits 1 145 Catalogue) can be marketed within the EU. National listing amounts of seed of these varieties can be marketed. The seed Other horticultural species – 58 is regulated by the Seed Act (SaatG). A pre-requisite is the does not require official certification but must meet the require- Horticultural Species 561 997 successful testing for DUS carried out in field or greenhouse ments for certified seed (agricultural varieties) or standard seed Agricultural and Horticultural Species 3.178 1.679 tests, in some cases supported by laboratory tests. Agricultu- (vegetable varieties). ral plant varieties must have a value for cultivation and use (VCU), i. e. superior in characteristics for cultivation, yield, International Co-operation - EU Commission for the food industry and its consumers. Descriptive variety and EU Council lists are available for agricultural species, including vines, BSA represents Germany in negotiations to harmonize amenity grasses and fruits. The lists can be ordered as print and develop the European Union seed legislation, OECD version with the BSA or can be downloaded from the BSA variety schemes and the EU plant variety legislation. website. Community Plant Variety Rights The Federal Plant Since 1995 Community Plant Variety Rights can be gran- Testing Stations of BSA ted which are valid throughout the EU. The Community Variety Office Plant Variety Office (CPVO) located in Angers, France, is Dachwig | Kirchstraße 28, 99100 Dachwig, Phone: +49 36206 245-0, Fax: 245-99 National Co-operation responsible for European Plant Variety Rights. On behalf Hannover | Osterfelddamm 80, 30627 Hannover, In the field of resistance and quality assessment the BSA of CPVO, BSA carries out variety tests for a wide range of Phone: +49 511 9566-50, Fax: 9566-9600 works closely together with several other institutions, plant species. Furthermore BSA represents Germany in Haßloch | Böhler Straße 100, 67454 Haßloch/Pfalz, e.g. the Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI), the Federal Office for the Administrative Council and technical working parties Phone: +49 6324 9240-0, Fax: 9240-30 Agriculture and Food (BLE), research institutes of the of the CPVO. Magdeburg | Hohendodeleber Weg 65, 39110 Magdeburg, Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) and Phone: +49 391 504545-0, Fax: 504545-111 various institutes of the federal states and universities. International Union for the Protection of Nossen | Waldheimer Straße 221, 01683 Nossen, Phone: +49 35242 453-0, Fax: 453-20 Testing procedures are under constant development in New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) Scharnhorst | In Scharnhorst Nr. 2, 31535 Neustadt, co-operation with the federal states, breeders and other The International Convention for the Protection of New Phone: +49 5032 961-0, Fax: 961-199 stakeholders. Varieties of Plants defines the scope of and the require- Wurzen | Torgauer Straße 100, 04808 Wurzen, BSA is responsible for the control of varietal identity and ments for Plant Breeders’ Rights. At present UPOV has 74 Phone: +49 3425 9040-0, Fax: 9040-20 purity of certain defined categories of marketed seeds and members (status: November 2015). UPOV is developing planting material in co-operation with the federal states, comprehensive guidance for internationally harmonized Status: January 2016 which are responsible for seed certification and control of variety testing and plant variety legislation. Germany is the seed market. As representative of the Federal Govern- represented in UPOV by the BSA. ment BSA acts as co-ordinator of the seed certification and seed control agencies of the federal states. Official Gazette A public authority supervised by It also co-ordinates performance trials for tree and shrub “Blatt für Sortenwesen” is BSA’s official gazette. It is been varieties with the German Nurseries Association (Bund issued monthly and comprises all BSA announcements con- Deutscher Baumschulen e.V. – BdB). In addition, BSA cerning NL and PBR. Moreover, all other information about prepares and submits legal drafts for variety and seed plant varieties, seeds and their regulations can be found here. legislation for the BMEL.

Descriptive Variety Lists Bundessortenamt The descriptive variety lists describe the characteristics of Osterfelddamm 80, 30627 Hannover Postfach 61 04 40, 30604 Hannover cultivation and use for all nationally registered and other Phone: +49 511 9566-50 important EU varieties and serve as a source for informa- Fax: +49 511 9566-9600 E-Mail: [email protected] tion for seed consumers, for official advisory services and http://www.bundessortenamt.de

www.bundessortenamt.de