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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | PepsiCo's attempt to sue farmers highlights the lacunae in IPR laws -Rajshree Chandra

PepsiCo's attempt to sue farmers highlights the lacunae in IPR laws -Rajshree Chandra

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published Published on May 3, 2019   modified Modified on May 3, 2019
-The Indian Express

Who is the rightful owner of the potato variety, FL 2027? Is it the farmer who bought, planted, harvested the potatoes from his own farm, or is it the innovator who cross-bred and modified the potato to have a low moisture content for crispier chips?

There could not have been a better heading for the IE editorial (April 30) on PepsiCo’s infringement suit against the farmers who have been accused of illegally cultivating a licensed variety of potato used for PepsiCo’s chips brand, “Lays”. “Lay off”, it said. It could have been saying, “back off Pepsi, the Indian farmer has rights under the Protection of Plant Variety and Farmers Rights (PPV&FR) Act”. Or, resonating with the boycott Pepsi brigade on social media, it could have been saying, “lay off the chips and other associated Pepsi products”. However it spoke to us, this should not be just an occasion to take easy sides in this David vs Goliath story. It should also occasion a more serious questioning.

Who is the rightful owner of the potato variety, FL 2027? Is it the farmer who bought, planted, harvested the potatoes from his own farm, or is it the innovator who cross-bred and modified the potato to have a low moisture content for crispier chips? Who should be the rightful bearer of rights is central to the conduct of liberal democracies and free markets.

Once upon a (capitalism) time, transnational corporations were the biggest votaries of a free-market economy (or so we thought). They wanted a level playing field, wanted trade barriers to be removed so that every corporation, irrespective of their country of origin, could participate freely without being discriminated against. This is the kernel of the GATT agreement and the driving logic of the WTO. So, why can’t the farmer be left free to cultivate a variety of potato that he considers as a profitable proposition? In this “free world”, why is it that a PepsiCo India feels emboldened to take away this freedom from nine farmers?

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The Indian Express, 2 May, 2019, https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/potato-farmers-lays-pepsico-intellectual-property-rights-5705554/


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