32 



directly obtain protection, is less costly, affords an adequate level 

 of breeders' rights while explicitly legislating research exemption 

 for breeding. 



If potatoes are included in the Plant Variety Protection Act, the 

 potato breeders would then have adequate protection for potato 

 germplasm which is comparable to other UPOV countries which 

 conduct potato breeding. Therefore, we can compete globally and 

 be in alignment with Canada in intellectual property rights for 

 potato. 



Moreover, we will have a form of protection that puts us on par 

 with biotechnologists' means to protect their product, which will 

 promote germplasm exchange between these two groups. 



Thank you for the opportunity to present our views this after- 

 noon. 



[The prepared statement of Mr. Douches follows:] 



Prepared Statement of David S. Douches, Research Geneticist and Potato 

 Breeder, Representing National Potato Council, Department of Crop and 

 Soil Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 



introduction 



The National Potato Council (NPC) and Potato Association of America (PAA), sup- 

 port the inclusion of the potato {Solarium tuberosum subsp. tuberosum) in the Plant 

 Variety Protection Act (PVPA) under the revisions required by the 1991 UPOV Con- 

 vention. 



The National Potato Council is the only trade association representing 10,500 

 commercial growers in 50 States. Our growers produce both seed potatoes and pota- 

 toes for consumption in a variety of forms. 



The PAA's main objective is the collection and dissemination of the best available 

 technical and practicable information relating to all aspects of potato production 

 and utilization, including breeding, genetics and certification. 



The potato is the fourth most important food crop in the world following rice, 

 wheat, and corn. It is also one of the leading crops in productivity on a per acre 

 basis. The potato is grown in almost all the countries in the world and forms the 

 staple of many societies. Close to 300 million metric tons are produced annually 

 worldwide. In the United States, it is the leading vegetable crop in acreage and 

 farm value, with 1.2 million acres planted in 1991 yielding 418,000,000 cwt and over 

 2.5 billion dollars in sales. One hundred thirty-two pounds of potatoes are consumed 

 per person per year. The potato is very amenable to biotechnology manipulations 

 (i.e., genetic engineering) and is one of the leading crops in which genetically engi- 

 neered plants, destined for commercial use, are being field tested. 



Why do we need to have an economically important crop like potato included in 

 the PVPA? 



A number of factors have contributed to this view by the PAA and NPC. First of 

 all, we have seen Canada institute plant breeders' rights upon potato cultivars in a 

 form similar to the UPOV Convention and also recommend that the United States 

 have a similar form of protection to unify North American intellectual property 

 rights. (The equivalent form of protection in the United States is the PVPA.) A 

 common form of protection for potatoes among UPOV countries allows the United 

 States to compete in a global market. Secondly, since the 1920's, potato breeding 

 and germplasm research in the United States has been the primary responsibility of 

 the public institutions (USDA and land-grant universities). In some States there has 

 been a reduction in funding of public breeding efforts and also a loss of public 

 potato breeding programs in the past few years. The reduction in funding has led 

 the public institutions to find alternate means of funding programs and to explore 

 various avenues to achieve program viability. One means of program support is roy- 

 alty collection via the protection of varieties. Recently, the private sector has invest- 

 ed in biotechnology-based research to develop new potato germplasm for the indus- 

 try based upon publically released varieties. The influx of the private sector variety 

 development requires that public breeders collaborate with this sector of research- 

 ers so that the best germplasm reaches the growers. The high investment costs of 

 this research requires the private sector to recoup their investment, and to seek 

 means to protect their invention or innovation (i.e., germplasm, variety, or gene). 



