Farmers Variety

							   National Horticulture Conference



Geographical Indication in the
context of Horticulture crops.

           14 November 2006




            S.Nagarajan.
          Chairperson, PPV&FRA
           Government of India
                New Delhi
Selection exerted by different groups in bringing
Distinctness and Uniformity in fruit tree crops.



                  OOO                   OOO                   OOO
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                 Folk variety.      Farmers’ Variety
                                                            New Variety
Germplasm.   Some selection done.   nearly Uniform
  Mixture      Heterogeneous         and Distinct.     Homogenous, Uniform
                                                           and Distinct.

                                                                 Crossed
                                                                Best clone.
                                        Non uniform
                                         root stock.           On standard
                                                                root stock
    ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS OF GIs

   PROTECTION OF GIs IMPORTANT:
       Improves the income of farmers and
        retains the rural population in less
        favored remote areas
       Protects consumers against acts of
        unfair competition by ensuing correct
        labeling information
       Acts as a vehicle for producers to
        compete on quality rather than quantity
    ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS OF
    GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS

   These products are sold at a premium today both in the
    domestic and international markets
   To derive economic benefits out of these products, the
    first step is to register them as geographical indications
    under the new Indian law
   Indian rights holders should definitely take clues from
    certain zealously protected European GIs such as
    Champagne and Scotch whisky
   Let’s look at the Champagne example…
        POLICY DECISION OF
    GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS IN
             FRANCE.
   Administered by the Comité Interprofessionelle du
    Vin de Champagne (CIVC): a body of private
        Champagne growers and houses
   The Champagne vineyards were planted as early
    as 1908: the Champagne Appellation marked out
   The region clearly identified and strictly limited by
    law since 1927
   Quality strictly regulated in terms of grape varieties,
    selection, processes of double fermentation,
    indication on the produce etc.
LOCTION AND VINE YARDS CLEARLY
   REGULATED AND MARKED.
  Geographical Indication

   The TRIPS Agreement sets forth
 standards to regulate international
 intellectual property protection and
     enforcement and establishes
international minimum standards for
    the protection of geographical
              indications.
                      The GI Act
   The ‘Geographic Indication” in relation to goods,
    means an indication which identifies such goods
    as agricultural goods, natural goods or
    manufactured good as originating or
    manufactured in the territory of a country or a
    region or ………… where a given quality
    reputation or other characteristic of such good is
    essentially attributed to its geographical origin
    and in case where such goods are manufactured
    goods one of the activities of either the production
    or of processing or preparation of the goods
    concerned takes place in such territory, region or
    locality as the case may be.
      What decides the
            GI ?

The quality of the product is attributed
essentially due to its geographical origin
and if it is of goods either the raw material
production or processing or the
preparation shall take place in such
territory.
    GI granted should be guarded.
 Gaining credibility as GI is time demanding
  process and to carve an aurora about the GI
  takes decades if not centuries.
 Creating a positive impression of the product
  quality, the environmental virtue and human skill
  of the area and the premium price commanded all
  happens in a gentle manner over a protracted
  period of time and through varied assessment
  procedures.
 The GI must on the client create a positive mental
  image about the product then the GI can be
  considered to have some virtue.
    Immigrants induced GI confusion .

 Immigrants carried with them their ethnic craft,
  plants to their new found land. They even
  named in the new territory provinces, cities,
  streets, rivers and mountain similar the ones in
  their “original homeland”.
 With several subsequent minor modifications
  now many food stuffs and farm products are
  marketed with brand names and GI overlapping
  with that of their “original homeland”. This
  situation has created enormous confusion in the
  market place between original and new
  settlement products.
         GI needs examination
   GI is a generic indication applicable to all in a
    particular geographic location and is generally
    applied for a product Ex. Maliabad mango, Ratnagiri
    mango etc.

   Where as, FV refers to farmer evolved plant variety
    occupying a geographic location and refers to the
    plant variety Ex. Alphanso types, Dasheri types.

   The “haplotype” can have minor site specific
    variation as Dasheri 1, Dasheri 2 etc.

   Use of homonymous names (denomination) for both
    FV and GI will lead to confusion.
                  GI and FV
 Conflict may arise if GI and FV registration are
  done for the same material and for the same
  purpose without a proper elaboration.
 GI is invariably for a product and not necessarily
  for a produce.
 GI indicates that the “product” originates from a
  specific geographical region, as it is for reasons
  of geographic environment, including natural
  and human factors.
 Mango orchard
Maliabad, Lucknow
 Lucknow mango
GI and Traceability
Ratnagiri mango
   orchards
Nagpur orange
  GI or AO
French machine that makes grafting.
Grapes grafted in seconds
TRIPS requirements and GI
 The TRIPS contains two protection
  standards for GI and Article 22 (2) requires
  countries to provide a legal means to
  prevent the use of GI that suggest that the
  goods originates in a geographic area
  other than the true place of origin.
 And Article 22 (3) requires the countries to
  keep in place a legal system to invalidate
  the registration of trademark, which
  contains a GI with respect to goods not
  originating in the territory indicated.
GI for protecting livelihood security.
   Inthe Uruguay Round of WTO
    negotiations, Geographic Indications
    (GIs) on wines and spirits were
    granted protection beyond those for
    other products under Article 23 of the
    TRIPS Agreement.
   And in the Doha Round member
    nations are desirous of extending
    above type of protection to some
    other important goods as well.
TM and GI what separates them.
 There are fundamental differences
  between Trade Mark (TM) and GI. The TM
  identifies a manufacturer, imply certain
  level of human creativity and can be used
  only by one agency or entity.
 On the contrary, the GI denotes the source
  of origin, the product quality or specialty
  that the consumer prefers is governed by
  the specific environment. There is no
  originality or invention or discovery
  involved in TM.
           The GI registry
 The  Registrar of the Controller –
  General of Patents, Designs and
  Trade Marks Act (PD&TM Act), 1999
  shall construe the GI in the Registry.
 The TRIPS agreement says “to be
  eligible for a GI, good must posses a
  quality, reputation or other
  characteristics attributable to its
  geographic origin”.
               GI for Mango
  If we now start seriously thinking of getting for
  Maliabad mango / Dashere or Ratnagiri mango /
  Alphanso start collecting data and frame rules
  and governance procedure it will take good ten
  years before GI and its coverage in different part
  of the world is achieved.
 Then trade monopoly for those mango types can
  be accomplished to benefit the grower by getting
  higher price for the fruit.

                                    Tanking you