Plant Breeders' Rights

[farmaholic]

wd9, a business but UNLIKE any other. So there
may have to be a few concessions. Like cotton
said most business managers wouldn't want to
operate in our business environment. Sad part is
we are the first rung in the ladder and those above
us dont do alot of conceding. So who's looking out
for us? Individually we are powerless united we
would be better off and in some cases we have
Government as a bit of a watch dog but it seems to
be old and toothless lately. Survival of the fittest,
but without some sort of Scales of Justice the
bastards will even grind down the strong.

[SASKFARMER3]

The Canola seed system is a prime example of what happens when you let companies run the seed system.
1. After a few years they drop varieties and say oh you cant seed them any more because were deregulating them. So all our old varieties are gone like the wind.
I would love to find a old variety of non GMO from back back. Seed with our 100lb ammonia and 120 sulfur phos blend. Yes do edge before then centurion with and give it a disease control if needed. I bet it would out yield our current varieties by 10 or more. Yes would be 6 ft. tall and lots of plant mass but pods the size of peas. But sorry their gone like the dinosaur.
Our seed costs since ok 1970 went from low 5.00 a acre to 70 now. What do we get as farmers for this great tec. Yes spray with Liberty or RR but other than that NOTHING. Yield this is the BS part some of you have only started growing and had very very good yields this isn't the norm. Growing over the long run their were huge yields back over the years. With old varieties.
So all geniuses who think this is good give the farm away one more time and guess what you will make Sweet F%&k All for profit and guess what the companies will make huge huge profits and once its gone like Canola its gone forever.
Wheat is a filler crop that is cheap to grow and gives you a nice return once the CWB is gone. Why F*&k it up.
We just grew the largest wheat crop ever with FERT CHEM AND GOOD seed with old tec do you think theirs will give us more. Yea More BS flyers and BS stats and BS.
Once its gone its gone. IDIOTS!!!!!!!!!!

[grower99]

I just did some internet research on
wheat yields(this info is readily
available:North Dakota Wheat
Commission,Wiki answers...The yields
depend on location,types of
wheat,farming practices
Kansas,ND,Montana for dry land is 30-50
bu/ac Nebraska is 44 winter wheat in
Montana from 2006-2011 was 41 bu/ac USA
for all wheat in 2010 and 2011 was 46
average for all of USA is 38-45 bu/ac
Manitoba in last 10 years is 43 SK in
last 7 years is 35 from 2002-2011 in
Alberta was 43 What do these numbers
tell us?

[bucket]

Mother nature and being in a shorter growing season would be my guess.

I am not ready to say it has anything to do with new varieties or dollars spent on research.

I have grown great crops with 2 inches of rain, and shitty ones with 36 inches.

Same fertilizer, chemical and varieties.

[wd9]

If there was a commercial pull for 2
dollar a pound low yield non herbicide
tolerant non hybrid canola seed, there
would be a business quickly created to
provide it. But no one wants it.

The most expensive seed is ALWAYS sold
out first. You can buy 5 to 7 dollar RR
seed, lots of that available, that
yields dam close to the 'best'. Seems
what farmers do with their wallets and
what they post on Agriville don't seem
to match.

Would you seriously want to go back to
public breeding OP's in canola? Doubt
it.

[grower99]

How much per tonne are the end royalties
in Australia. Is there a cost per bushel
to retain seed for future planting and
if so what is the cost? Does any one
know which SK farm groups were in favour
of the UPOV'91 legislation? Maybe they
could comment on how growers will
benefit. The yields in the USA and
Canada are very close.Of course most of
their varieties are from public breeding
programs. Is their public breeding
program experiencing cutbacks like ours?

[grower99]

In Mar.20,2013 in AGCanada.com De
Rocquinay states that" Manitoba does
generally have higher spring wheat
yields compared to our counterparts
south of the border." He goes on to
state "In Australia in 2000 95% of the
wheat breeding was done by the public
sector. With major changes(including
single desk selling)by 2012,100% of
wheat breeding was done by 6 private
sector companies".How have these changes
in Australia affected yields,seed costs
and the bottom line? Are Australian
farmers happy with this? If not what is
their recourse?

[SASKFARMER3]

So with all the super breading it seems in Canada with our varieties were just as good or higher. Hm maybe again its our farming practice of no till and fert. Our piss poor average for wheat yields on some years is probably due to frost. 2002 and 2004 screwed us. rest were good to normal like this year. so average 2 f*&ked and 6 average and two way high gives you 37 to 40. USA doesn't have frost to wipe out but has drought.

[malleefarmer]

There are several State & Federal Government levies that as grain buyers from the Primary Producers Centre State Exports is legally obligated to deduct from the grower payment and pay directly to the appropriate government agency on the grower’s behalf. These levies are as listed below

State Levies - 2013/14 season

Primary Industry Funding Scheme (PIFS) - $0.20/t
Grain Research and Development Fund (PIFS GRDF) - $0.30/t

Federal Levies - 2013/14 season

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry Australia (AFFA) – 1.02% of farm gate value

End Point Royalties - 2013/14 season

Grain producers are legally obligated to pay end point royalties on certain crop varieties. To assist grain producers and royalty managers Centre State Exports will deduct the applicable end point royalty from grower payments and remit the funds to the relevant royalty manager. All varieties, relevant breeders and rates are listed below.
End point royalty depends on how old the variety is usually between $3.00 per tonne and $1 and levy is lfted after 5 or 6 years.
when delivered to bulk handling system type is declared and levy automatically comes of payment so seed can be bulked up but levy still paid
A lot of breeding here is done by ag universities some private some multinational Australian farmers don't even blink at paying levies and some guys still grow wheat that's been around for 25 years

[malleefarmer]

should add I was mostly reffering to wheat canola is 85% done by multi national companies

[grassfarmer]

I thought you grain guys would have been aware of this sooner - the NFU has been working on it for
20 years. Bit late now to ask "what can be done to stop it?"

Here is a submission the NFU made to CFIA on the topic in 2005.
http://www.nfu.ca/sites/www.nfu.ca/files/AMMENDMENTS%20CFIA%20Brief%20March%202005.pdf

Bad news for farmers but good for corporate representatives like wd9

[wd9]

Asshole comment grassfarmer.