Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/751050
www.goodfruit.com GOOD FRUIT GROWER DECEMBER 2016 27 steward to protect the variety from pirated propagation, Brandt said. Licensing growers to produce and sell the apple gives those growers incentive to be a watchdog for violations. "They're involved with the everyday commercializa- tion," Brandt said. "They know what's going on. They'll hear real quickly if somebody is infringing on that." PVM would have trouble keeping tabs on European growers from Yakima. "It's not practical, not realistic," Brandt said. Also, Brandt does not want to risk legal challenges in other nations, which may want their farmers to have a chance to grow a variety in return for the expense and hassle of screening it and protecting it. He suspects some nations may interpret UPOV's requirements differently than Hutton from CIOPORA. Applying for plant breeders' rights and sending wood overseas is an expensive process, Brandt said. "WSU has an expectation to receive a return on their investment." Indeed, universities and other private breeders often license new varieties internationally. "We believe that global markets for perishable goods are often best served by local producers rather than solely U.S.-based producers," said Thomas Hutton (unrelated to Steve Hutton), operations director and chief of staff of the University of Minnesota office of commercialization in an email. Even Honeycrisp, an open variety in the United States, is propagated and sold only through licensed companies in the European Union, South Africa and New Zealand. All Minnesota growers are eligible to produce the varieties, but the university seeks more production and marketing capacity to commercialize its varieties such as SweeTango and Rave than Minnesota alone can provide. "Minnesota is not a large-volume producer of apples and so cannot supply the necessary quantities to support a national or international program," Thomas Hutton said. Leith Gardner, a private cherry breeder in Modesto, California, uses international licenses to maximize sales of her varieties but tries to work only in nations that have a track record of respecting intellectual property and don't compete directly with California. Even with licens- ees, her company, Zaiger Genetics, struggles sometimes to stamp out piracy. "There's no 100 percent in anything," she said. David Cain, another California cherry breeder, echoed Brandt's cost concern. Hiring attorneys overseas costs money, so breeders naturally want to work with a licensee to generate sales. "Patent attorneys aren't cheap," he said. Cosmic so far in the world economy So far, Proprietary Variety Management has sent between 10 and 20 Cosmic buds to quarantines in the Netherlands to satisfy European Union requirements for the Italian licenses, as well as Argentina, Chile, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. The facilities are rough equivalents to the United States' Clean Plant Network. Plants typically spend one or two years in quar- antine, Brandt said. Then begins a "grow-out" period to boost the supply of stock trees in the nurseries, as well as the trees for repositories, Brandt said. Last year, PVM signed an agreement with VOG and VI.P, two closely related fruit cooperatives in South Tyrol, Italy, the first and only license holders outside the state of Washington so far. Commercial plantings may still be five years away, Brandt said, with the first harvest a few years beyond that. The two Italian companies will operate under strict rules, Brandt said, though he declined to reveal specif- ics. They may only grow a certain acreage under certain conditions and sell the apple only in Europe and North Africa, regions in which they already market. PVM and the university have chances to "reconsider" the contract each time the companies reach certain "milestones," Brandt said. If they meet the requirements, they will remain the exclusive European Union licensees of Cosmic Crisp, Brandt said. PVM is actively seeking similar license arrangements in other parts of the world on behalf of the university, Brandt said. "The size of scope of this project does present a learn- ing curve for all of us," Brandt said. • Your trusted source. 800.743.2125 | northwestfcs.com · Real Estate Financing · Operating Lines of Credit · Country Home & Lot Loans · Crop Insurance * We support agriculture and rural communities with reliable, consistent credit and financial services, today and tomorrow.