(Sui Generis) Rights to Animal Genetic Resources

Animal Breeders' Rights:

Analysing the regulatory framework of innovation in the realm of animal genetic resources delivers an immediate astonishment. Whereas IP systems to protect plant varieties have been developed since the 1930s, no such system has been conceived or even thoroughly studied in relation to animal breeds. The question is whether this is rooted in a lack of necessity, biological obstacles, or in a simple lack of (policy) analysis. We present the hypothesis that the creation of such a system could – if properly tailored thereto – respond to a number of needs. We identify and analyse the elements which can call for the implementation of ‘Animal Breeders’ Rights’: innovation, the conservation and use of biodiversity, and economic development of agricultural regions. Then, we look at the eventual obstacles to finally address the concrete shape it could take.

Livestock Keepers' Rights:

Institutionalise Livestock Keepers’ Rights as sui generis rights? Do so in the framework of a Treaty on AnGRFA? Which elements would the rights have to encompass, in particular at the interface with markets, the ABS system and intellectual property rights? What can be learned from the model of farmers’ rights as formalised in the ITPGRFA and its implementation?