Farmers' Rights was among the most contested issues during the negotiations towards the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

The Leipzig Conference on Plant Genetic Resources was a major event in the 1990s. Here too the importance of the realization of Farmers' Rights was addressed. It was highlighted in the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable use of Plant Genetic Resources, as well as in the comprehensive State of the World's Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which formed a basis for the conference.

1989 marks a breakthrough for the negotiations on Farmers' Rights in the FAO. The FAO Conference adopted two resolutions on Farmers' Rights, one of which should provide an important basis for all further negotiations.

Thorough analysis of the documentation shows that the concept of Farmers' Rights was first brought up in international negotiations in the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 1986.

To understand the provisions on Farmers' Rights in the International Treaty, it is useful to review the history of negotiations regarding these rights. Since Farmers' Rights were first taken up in international negotiations in 1986, important clarifications have been made.