Partners in Innovation Welcomes the Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Ottawa, Wednesday, May 7, 2014 – The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) has become the 17th organization to show its support for amendments to the Canada’s Plant breeders’ Rights legislation by joining Partners in Innovation.
“Accessibility to research is incredibly important to keep our farmers on the forefront – moving forward in the marketplace and maintaining productive harvests. Adoption of Bill C-18 and its proposed changes to Plant Breeders Rights will address obstacles that impede the competitiveness of Canadian farmers,” says CFA President Ron Bonnett.
Canada’s agriculture and food sector is an enormous driver of the Canadian economy. In 2012 it generated $103 billion, accounting for close to 7% of our nation’s Gross Domestic Product; and it employed over 2.1 million people – 1 in every 8 Canadian jobs. Bringing Plant Breeders’ Rights legislation into compliance with the most recent international plant variety protection convention (UPOV 1991), will help the Canadian agriculture industry become more competitive. It will give Canadian breeders intellectual property protection tools that are comparable to those used by breeders around the world; opening new markets for Canadian innovations and giving Canadian farmers access to superior genetics and varieties developed both inside Canada and beyond our borders.
“The legislation strikes a good balance between giving developers the ability to see a return on their investment and research efforts while also preserving the right for farmers to save and condition seed for their own use,” says Bonnett. “It’s a win-win situation and key to continued growth for the agriculture sector.”
The Canadian Federation of Agriculture was founded in 1935 to provide Canada’s farmers with a single voice in Ottawa, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture is the country’s largest general farm organization. Its members include provincial general farm organizations, national and inter-provincial commodity organizations – representing over 200,000 Canadian farmers and farm families through its membership. www.cfa-fca.ca
Partners in Innovation is a broad coalition of leading organizations representing producers of a wide variety of crops from grains, oilseeds and pulse crops to vegetables, fruits, potatoes and ornamentals from across Canada; along with national organizations representing crop value chains; and industry.
For more information on the Partners in Innovation please visit:
Web: www.partnersininnovation.ca
Twitter: @CdnAgInnovation
-30-
For Information please contact:
Jessica Goodfellow, Director of Communications
Canadian Federation of Agriculture / Fédération canadienne de l’agriculture
T: 613-236-3633 ext. 2322; communications@cfafca.ca
- Canadian Federation of Agriculture
- Atlantic Grains Council
- Alberta Barley Commission
- Alberta Wheat Commission
- Barley Council of Canada
- Canadian Horticulture Council
- Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance
- Canadian Potato Council
- Canadian Seed Trade Assoc.
- Cereals Canada
- Fédération des Producteurs de Cultures Commerciales du Québec
- Grain Farmers of Ontario
- Grain Growers of Canada
- Manitoba Pulse Growers Assoc.
- Mustard 21
- The Prairie Oat Growers Assoc.
- Western Canadian Wheat Growers