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4 

 Convention countries. 



Third. They will increase access by American growers to 

 high quality varieties of seeds developed outside the United 

 States that might not otherwise be available in this country. 

 Foreign breeders will have the confidence that adequate and 

 effective protection is available to them in the United States. 

 As a consequence, American consumers will benefit from a wider 

 and more secure food and fiber supply and American plant breeders 

 will be able to use these varieties in their own breeding 

 programs . 



Mr. Chairman, we commend you and the Committee for holding 

 this hearing. We hope that with the collective efforts and 

 wisdom of the Congress, the Executive Branch, consumers, the seed 

 trade industry, the agricultural production sector, public 

 interest groups, and plant breeders, we may be able to improve 

 our PVPA, thus permitting the United States to become party to 

 the 1991 Version of the UPOV Convention and thereby better serve 

 American agriculture and the American consumer. The 

 Administration supports amendments which make the following 

 changes in the PVPA. 



The American tradition of encouraging farming by private 

 individuals goes back to the founding of our nation. Under 

 H.R. 2927 a provision is included which would continue to 

 safeguard the privilege of farmers to save seed of a protected 

 variety for planting on their own holdings. The sale of seed by 

 farmers to others would be prohibited under H.R. 2927. However, 



