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Abstract
Declining government budgets, pressure from donors and agribusiness firms
and the failure of some government seed corporations are encouraging policy
makers in a number of less developed countries (LDCs) to privatize plant
breeding, seed production and seed distribution. Developed countries are
pressing for stronger intellectual property rights such as plant breeders' rights
(PBR) and utility patents as a means of encouraging private firms to transfer
technology and conduct more research and development (R&D). A number of
countries are considering PBR legislation.1
This paper examines the development of PBRs and their impact on private
research and technology transfer in the United States, France, the United
Kingdom, Argentina and Chile. From their experiences some policy implications
for developing countries are derived.