The UPOV Technical Committee (TC) Meeting, held on October 21 and 22, 2024, brought together global experts to discuss critical advancements and updates in the protection of new plant varieties. This year’s agenda focused on streamlining UPOV Membership, Strategic Plan, and Statistics; Key Initiatives and Developments; TechnicalWorking Party (TWP) Updates and Discussions, among others.
Check the report made by our team after participating in this important meeting for our sector.
UPOV Membership, Strategic Plan, and Statistics
Armenia became the 79th member of UPOV - Armenia deposited its instrument for ascension to the 1991 Act and became bound on March 2nd in 2024.
The Law of United Arab Emirates and Lao PDR are under consideration.
UPOV’s 2023-2027 Strategic Business Plan: focuses on engaging stakeholders, expanding membership, providing guidance on the UPOV system, and delivering high-quality services to members.
Statistics for 2023 indicate growth in the number of applications for plant variety protection, while some members experienced a decrease in specific sectors.
Key Initiatives and Developments
Essentially Derived Varieties (EDVs): The development of new guidance on EDVs was completed after four years of work.
UPOV PVP Certificate Program: The launch of the UPOV PVP (Plant Variety Protection) Certificate Program in 2024, a program aiming to provide continuous learning opportunities for professionals in the field of plant variety protection.
Technical Working Party (TWP) Updates and Discussions
During the TC meeting, the chairpersons of the Technical Working Parties reported on their work and key topics of discussion in 2024:
TWA Highlights
The TWA discussed speeding up DUS testing by comparing one site over two years to two sites in one year. Results showed that similar agro-climatic conditions within the same year yielded closer results than tests in different zones in a single year.
The TWA explored using drones for DUS field phenotyping in the UK, showing promise but needing more research on data capture, flight timing, field obstacles, and storage costs.
The TWA reviewed nine draft Test Guidelines and agreed to submit those for Hemp/Cannabis (revision) and Zoysia Grasses to the TC for adoption.
TWF Highlights
The TWF examined a proposal to amend document TGP/7, regarding the number of plant parts to be examined from single plants for DUS testing of fruit crops. The TWF highlighted the need to clarify the number of plants used in DUS testing for fruit crops, where small sample sizes are common. The TC supported further development of proposals in this area.
The TWF discussed the required number of growing cycles noting potential contradiction (between wording in UPOV documents); which allows conclusion of an examination when the outcome is certain and requiring observation of two independent growing cycles. Experts will develop proposals, including the possibility of reducing testing to one growing cycle for specific fruit crops and defining what constitutes "a satisfactory crop of fruit".
The TWF reviewed six draft Test Guidelines and agreed to submit the one for Grapevine (revision) to the TC for adoption.
The TWF's 56th session will be held in Turkey, from June 23rd to 26th, 2025.
TWO Highlights
Discussions continued on when illustrations could replace example varieties in test guidelines, with the goal of providing more comprehensive information and addressing the challenges of obtaining example varieties.
The TWO reviewed eight draft Test Guidelines and agreed to submit those for Lavender (revision), Leucanthemum, and Poinsettia (revision) to the TC for adoption.
The TWO's 57th session will be held in the Netherlands, from March 31st to April 3rd, 2025.
TWM Highlights
The TWM noted advancements in image analysis for DUS testing, including size and colour and phenotypic identification of characteristics.
Presentations on molecular techniques highlighted the use of molecular markers for genomic prediction, assessing uniformity, and variety traceability.
In 2023, the TC asked members and observers for presentations on confidentiality of molecular information in technical working parties, but none were received in 2024. At the TWM, the Breeders Organizations presented on this topic and offered to draft a model agreement template for the 2025 meeting, while members were again invited to present on existing policies. The CPVO in the EU recently adopted guidelines on the status of plant material for DUS testing and believes molecular information should be treated with the same confidentiality.
The TWM's third session will be held in China in 2025 – dates are still to be confirmed.
Matters for Consideration Arising from the TWPs
The UPOV Office presented several matters for consideration by the TC arising from the TWP discussions. Key areas included:
Disease Resistance Assessment: Assessment of disease resistance, typically done for vegetable crops, is increasing. Discussions on quantitative disease resistance emphasized the need for more frequent meetings and broader expert involvement. The meeting also covered how to describe scales for disease resistance traits, especially with few example varieties, and considered converting phytopathologists' infection scales into UPOV’s TG-compatible notes.
New Technologies: A seminar was suggested at the next TC meeting to explore AI-based markers and image analysis advancements.
Development of Guidance and Information Materials
Furthermore, the meeting discussed revisions and proposals for various UPOV guidance documents:
Variety Denominations: Proposal reviewed to allow repeating denominations for species within a genus due to interspecific hybrids.
TGP 7 Revision: Positive feedback on clarifying tree dormant period assessments.
TGP 12 Revision: Proposal for table of equivalent disease resistance expressions discussed.
TGP 5 Revision: Updates to DUS test report templates proposed for clearer structure.
Plant Material Access: Focus on info exchange over specific guidance.
Measures to enhance collaboration:
The meeting reviewed progress on measures to improve cooperation in DUS examination among UPOV members:
To address cooperation barriers, the TC raised issues about formal agreements, outsourcing restrictions, and non-acceptance of reports. A CAJ survey highlighted further reasons, like environmental effects, collection completeness, phytosanitary issues, and lack of breeder cooperation info. Possible solutions discussed: info-exchange events, enhancing the DUS test report template (TGP 5), encouraging report takeovers, and promoting breeder cooperation transparency. Ongoing CAJ discussions continue, with several countries sharing their cooperation improvement efforts, such as Argentina's cooperation with Japan and Canada's free DUS test report sharing.
Measures to Improve Support Provided for DUS Examination
Improvements to the Test Guideline Template (TG Template) include a new cloud-based drafting tool for better user experience, real-time changes during TWP meetings, and streamlined translation work, with proposals for table of characteristics in a single language and interactive version for handheld devices. For better guidance and training, proposals include courses for leading experts, informal meetings, and opportunities for observers, such as crop leads from CIOPORA, to familiarize themselves with the drafting process.
Training and Distance Learning:
Discussions included updating existing distance learning courses and creating new ones. The importance of promoting training opportunities was emphasized. CIOPORA offered to cooperate on training via its Academy webinars. The UPOV office plans country-specific webinars on PRISMA, with the next one for the US in November.
Citrus UPOV Codes
Redundant codes in the Genie database were to be removed, but updated Citrus complex codes created an issue. The TWF will revisit this in 2025 due to the complexity and the need for fruit experts. The TC noted the reclassification of Citrus genera and species, affecting UPOV codes for Citrus, ×Citroncirus, Fortunella, and Poncirus.
Additional Characteristics in Test Guidelines
The meeting reiterated the guidance that test guidelines are not exhaustive and that additional characteristics, meeting certain criteria, can be proposed for international harmonization.
Method of Propagating the Variety
To ensure consistency and facilitate data management in PRISMA, the TC requested the TWPs to consider adopting a structured approach for providing information on the method of propagating the variety in test guidelines.
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