Pistorius, R. J., and Butler, B. (1996). How Farmers' Rights Can Be Used to Adapt Plant Breeders' Rights
Pistorius, R. J., and Butler, B. (1996). How Farmers' Rights Can Be Used to Adapt Plant Breeders' Rights. Biotechnology and Development Monitor, 28, September 1996, pp. 7-11.
In this article, the question of farmers' rights is discussed in light of the lack of political will in developed countries to generate additional funds to support the role of farmers in maintaining agrobiodiversity.
The authors suggest using farmers' rights to curb the negative effects of the 1991 Act of the Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV). A remuneration system could be established to compensate breeders without recognizing property rights, i.e. a system with contracts between breeders and the society. Such a system would be closer to the original idea behind the plant breeders' rights system, Butler and Pistorius maintain. The main benefit of the system would be that farmers would have the right to freely use the seed they buy.