61 



Additionally, we have statements from the National Farmers 

 Union, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., and the National Coun- 

 cil of Commercial Plant Breeders, to be inserted into the record. 



[The prepared statements appear at the conclusion of the hear- 

 ing.] 



Mr. Stenholm. Ms. Shand, if I understand your statement, you 

 do not support illegal brown bagging but you also do not believe 

 that the farmer's exemption in H.R. 2927 is sufficient? Or do you 

 believe that it is sufficient but that, if we pass this, the legislation 

 will be back in a short period of time to overturn the farmer's ex- 

 emption? 



Ms. Shand. I think at present in the amendments the attempts 

 to restrict the farmers' right are too restrictive. I feel that whatever 

 happens that it is opening the door for total elimination of the 

 farmers' right to save seed for replanting on their own holdings. I 

 say that because of the language in the 1991 UPOV that makes it 

 optional for signatory States to allow farmers to save seed. 



Mr. Stenholm. But if we pass a bill that preserves the right of 

 an individual farmer to catch his own seed and utilize his own seed 

 for his own purposes, you would be in favor of that? 



Ms. Shand. I would. I would like to see the farmer maintain the 

 ability to sell limited quantities of seed. 



Mr. Stenholm. How limited? 



Ms. Shand. I think that needs to be defined. And I did not come 

 today prepared with a definition. I agree with the Farm Bureau 

 that a definition could be constructed that would preserve the 

 farmer's right. 



Mr. Stenholm. Do you believe that an individual farmer would 

 have an obligation to pay the royalty on 1 bushel, a small amount 

 of seed as well as a large amount? 



Ms. Shand. I think that, in actuality, that is not very workable, 

 and I think it could be an administrative nightmare for both farm- 

 ers and for the seed companies. 



Mr. Stenholm. What about the individual farmer's responsibil- 

 ity? Was it the farmer's responsibility to pay that royalty? 



I agree with you that it could get very unworkable as far as en- 

 forcing. Is it an individual farmer's responsibility to pay it regard- 

 less of how small it is? Morally? 



Ms. Shand. I am not sure that there is morally. I think if we are 

 talking about incidental sales, I am not sure that I would agree 

 with that. 



Mr. Stenholm. So you really do not believe that the breeder of 

 a seed has the rights to that product that that breeder has, in fact, 

 developed? 



Ms. Shand. I believe that those breeders need to have adequate 

 incentives to continue their work, and they need to be rewarded for 

 their contribution in developing new varieties. But I think that in 

 many cases the whole notion of plant intellectual property rights 

 is out of control, that we are seeing — what is happening is that we 

 are not just supporting innovation in plant breeding, that at this 

 point, in many cases, as these things become more restrictive, as 

 the rights of the breeders become much stronger, that historic bal- 

 ance between the right of farmers and the right of breeders is no 



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