b"ENSURING PROGRESS FOR EUROPEAN AGRICULTUREHOW SEED COMPANIES PARTNER TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO INNOVATION AND PLANT BREEDING MATERIALS.BY: HLNE GUILLOT, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE ACLPCOMMITMENT TO EUROPE'S WHY IT MATTERS AGRICULTURAL FUTUREAfter two years ofEmbracing innovation is the key to ensuring that existence of theEuropean agriculture remains both productive and ACLP, more thanglobally competitive in an era of mounting challenges. 95% of the patentedThe EU stakeholders cannot afford to lag behind as traits in agriculturalother regions rapidly adopt new agricultural technol-crops in Europe areogies. By fostering a culture of innovation, Europe accessible undercan secure its food supply, empower its farmers, and fair and reasonablereinforce its leadership in sustainable, high-quality conditions. With aagriculture on the global stage. Food security in free breeding rightEurope would not have been possible without inten-and compulsorysive investments in plant science research and devel-licensing, theopment from public and private entities. Breeding platform attractshas contributed significantly to agricultural progress, companies ofincreasing annual yields by an average of 1.16% 1over different sizes,the last two decades. and different IPAccess to a wide range of genetic diversity is backgrounds andessential for breeding companies to select new traits practices. such as drought tolerance, pest resistance, and improved nutritional contentto support the breed-ing of adapted and high-yielding future varieties. The development of new crop varieties requires long-term research investment and collaboration, with an aver-age of 8 to 10 years needed to bring a new variety toHlne Guillot, Managing Director of the ACLPthe market. Due to the pressing challenges in agricul-ture, policymakers are currently discussing the legis-lation around the use of the latest technologies, suchENSURING FAIR ACCESS FOR ALL as genome editing, to accelerate the breeding pro- BREEDERS, REGARDLESS OF SIZE OR cess and the introduction of new, strong varieties inINNOVATION CAPACITYthe fields of Europe. These new genomic techniquesThe European seed sector is a highly diverse eco-(NGT) have the potential to better address climatesystem, consisting of small and medium-sized change and its consequences, such as new diseasesenterprises (SMEs) alongside large companies. This and more frequent natural disasters. diversity drives innovation, resilience and food secu-Intellectual property (IP) protection plays arity, but it also highlights the need for a level play-crucial role in safeguarding scientific progress bying field when it comes to accessing new breeding ensuring a fair return on investment. However, ittechnologies. Seed companies allocate up to 20% of should not become a barrier that stifles competitiontheir annual turnover in research and development or restricts breeders from working with the latestand this exceptional level of investment can only be innovations. Striking the right balance betweensustainably maintained on the long-term if companies transparency, access, and protection of investmentsget a fair return on investment. Reproducing a plant is crucial, as fostering healthy competition within theis a simple process. When this plant is the result of sector is the key driver of innovation. many years of research and improvements to include 1Steffen Noleppa, Matti Cartsburg; HFFA Research ; The socio-economic and environmental values of plant breeding in the EU and for selected EU Member States ; 2021 : HFFA-Research-The-socio-economic-and-environmental-values-of-plant-breeding-in-the-EU.pdf22ISEED WORLD EUROPEISEEDWORLD.COM/EUROPE | MAY 2025"