In Brief

EUROPEAN PATENT OFFICE UPHOLDS HARVARD MOUSE PATENT

The European Patent Office (EPO) on 6 July upheld a pan-European patent on a mouse that has been genetically modified to develop cancer. The ruling applies to mice only, not all species of rodents. The patent, which had been granted to Harvard University in 1992, had been challenged by a collection of church, environmental and animal protection groups over concerns that it violated the dignity of living beings. The EPO acknowledged concerns over ethical issues and animal rights, but also said the medical uses of the patent must be considered. Christopher Then of Greenpeace expressed regrets that the EPO had not backed off on recognising patents for mammals, but nevertheless welcomed the ruling's restriction to mice as an "important partial success". While the genetically modified mouse was granted a patent in the US in 1988, Canada's supreme court ruled in 2002 that the mouse cannot be patented under current Canadian law.

"Europe upholds patent on altered mouse," AP, 6 July 2004.

NATURAL DECAF DISCOVERED IN BRAZIL

Researchers in Brazil recently discovered coffee plants that naturally produce virtually decaffeinated beans. These plants, whose beans contain 20 times less caffeine than normal coffee, were found among 3,000 seedlings at the Agronomy Institute of Campinas, brought from Ethiopia to Brazil in 1965. This discovery, which was published in the 24 June issue of the scientific journal Nature, could have a huge impact on the Brazilian coffee industry. If the plants can be developed commercially, Brazil could make greater inroads into the growing, and lucrative, decaffeinated market, which represents 10 percent of coffee consumed in the world. Decaf prices are 25 to 30 percent higher than regular coffee, a difference that could change the lives of coffee growers. Raw coffee prices are hovering at a 30-year low, having declined an average of three percent a year since 1970. Prices no longer cover the cost of production, leading many coffee farmers to abandon their plantations, or cultivate more profitable, but illicit, crops such as coca and khat. This discovery also has positive implications for the world-wide campaign to preserve biodiversity. According to the Maria Bernardete Silvarolla, who led the research team, this discovery shows the "importance of preserving genetic resources", and is a ''full validation'' of the value of maintaining germplasm banks of plants, cuttings and seeds, not only for coffee, but also for all flora and fauna.

For more information on the International Coffee Crisis, see the Oxfam Report "Mugged: Poverty in Your Coffee Cup".

"Brazil: A Cup of Decaf Coffee? Naturally," TERRAVIVA EUROPE, 28 June 2004; "Oxfam Urges US to Immediately Rejoin the International Coffee Organization," OXFAM RELEASE, 24 March 2004.

WTO PANEL DELAYS PROCEEDINGS IN BIOTECH DISPUTE

The WTO panel examining the US-Argentina-Canada complaint against the EU's de facto moratorium on the approval of new genetically modified organisms (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 28 May 2004) has delayed the next step in the proceedings by about a month, pushing the second panel session to the middle of September. The delay could be even longer (mid-October or early November) if the panel grants the EU's request to set up an expert panel to examine technical issues related to the case. Parties now have until 19 July to submit rebuttals in the case and until 22 July to comment on the need for an expert group. The US has already told the panel that it did not consider the establishment of a panel necessary. The timing of the interim and the final rulings remained unclear in view of the revised schedule. The delay in the GM case follows the announcement last week that the panel examining the EU-sugar case will need more time to provide a ruling (see BRIDGES Weekly, 30 June 2004).

ICTSD reporting.

CONCERNS RAISED AS FAO TREATY ENTERS INTO FORCE

With the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (IT)'s entry into force on 29 June (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 8 April 2004), some civil society groups remain dubious about the Treaty's effectiveness. While clearly recognising the significance of the Treaty, the UK Food Group noted that much work needed to be done "to make sure its laudable purposes are not undermined by economically powerful countries seeking rights to extract and privatise genetic resources covered by the Treaty". Specifically, the group pointed to ambiguities in the text on whether, and to what extent, countries would be able to impose intellectual property rights (IPR) on genetic resources, obtained from the Multilateral System, which had been modified. Others also raised questions about the consistency of the Treaty with existing national IPR regimes and international agreements, including the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights. Underlying these considerations are growing concerns over the continued erosion of plant biodiversity -- it is estimated that three-quarters of the genetic diversity found in agricultural crops has been lost over the last century, and currently 80 percent of plant energy comes from only 12 crops.

A copy of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture is available at:

For more information on this topic, see "Agrobiodiversity and Intellectual Property Rights: Selected Issues under the FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture", Robert L.J. Lettington.

"International Seed Treaty Becomes Law," UK FOOD GROUP, 29 June 2004.

MIXED SIGNALS FOR FUTURE OF BIOTECH IN EUROPE

At their 28 June meeting, European environment ministers failed to reach a decision on whether to authorise Monsanto's genetically modified herbicide-tolerant maize NK 603. This marked the second time ministers were unable to agree on an application, and it will again be up to the Commission to take the decision (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 28 May 2004). The approval would only apply for the use of the maize in animal feed and not for planting. The application for food use is pending in the EU Agriculture Council. Meanwhile, the Commission presented its vision for plant biotechnology for the coming 20 years, as drafted by stakeholders from industry, consumer organisations and research institutions. The paper's authors note the potential of plant biotechnology to address challenges arising from population growth, fossil fuels shortage and the resulting need for renewable plant-based resources. The authors call for a European technology platform on research in this area. The paper comes at a time of growing concern that biotech research is likely to collapse in Britain with the pull-out of the last major biotech company Syngenta, which is moving its operation to the US. Many predict that university research will be negatively affected as business funding is reduced and unlikely to be substituted by public funding. Among the EU countries, the UK has witnessed the most extensive consultation and assessment process on biotech, highlighting the public's concern over its use in the country (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 3 October 2003).

"Member states still divided over new GM products," EurActiv, 29 June 2004; "Plant biotechnology - a silver bullet for global challenges," EurActiv, 28 June 2004; GM research collapses in UK as lat big firm quits," INDEPENDENT, 5 July 2004.