RICETEC LOSES IN THE BASMATI BATTLE

RiceTec Inc. a Texas-based US corporation has lost the Basmati Battle.

RiceTec had made 20 far-reaching claims related to Basmati in Patent No. 5663484. As a result of a Supreme Court case filed by the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, the Government of India challenged 3 claims related to rice grain (No.s 15-17) in April 2000. RiceTec had given up 4 claims. However, the claims related to seed had not been challenged. The re-examination request filed in the USPTO by the Government was done in the name of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) and no challenge was made to the remaining claims, thereby totally sidelining the issue of protection of farmer rights. The Government of India through the APEDA focussed only on protecting traders' interests which are linked to grain, but not farmers rights which are linked to seeds.

The Research Foundation had continued its campaign for the defense of farmers' rights and basmati seed. It continued to call for the cancellation of false claims to invention related to Basmati lines. Citizens across the world had been mobilised to defend farmers' rights. As a result of citizens pressure the US Patent and Trademark Office (US PTO) has cancelled claims 1-3, 5-7, 10, 14, 18-20 which were not challenged by the Government of India though they are extremely broad in scope and had the potential to undermine the rights of farmers growing.

The Patent Examiner has also changed the title of the patent from "Basmati Rice Lines and Grains" - covering a broad generic claim to invention of Basmati, to invention of Basmati to "Rice Lines Bas867, RT 1117, RT1121" which are restricted to the specific breeding done by RiceTec and not open-ended as the original patent was, which covered wide ranges of plant height, grain size, aromatic quality including the qualities of our traditional Basmati. The patent holder now cannot claim the unique qualities of our Basmati nor the unique name "Basmati".

The surviving claims 8, 9, 11, 12 &13 are narrow and related only to the varieties actually bred by RiceTec. These claims are "deemed free of prior art". The cancellation of other claims now prevents the potential use of the Basmati patent against growing traditional Basmati.

The Research Foundation's Campaign Against Basmati Biopiracy" was based on three injustices inherent in the original Basmati patent: 1. ignoring of traditional breeding by farmers 2. giving a broad-based patent to RiceTec which covered the traditional Basmati varieties in its scope 3. hence undermining farmers' rights both by negating farmers breeding and by allowing the establishment of a monopoly which could prevent growers of traditional Basmati from free use of their own seed. On each of these 3 counts, we have won the Basmati Battle.

The media reports that RiceTec has won the appeal that have appeared in the Indian national dailies "The Indian Express" and "The Hindustan Times" are false.

RiceTec has been forced to give up the title of its patent, it has been forced to give up 15 of its 20 claims, including those with the most far-reaching implications related to biopiracy.

This is a victory for India, not RiceTec and it is a victory which was fought for only partially by the Government. The global citizen's Campaign Against Biopiracy which was successful in getting the Neem Patent cancelled has also succeeded in having the false and far-reaching claims in the Basmati case cancelled. The Basmati Battle has been won by us. The patent on rice and patent on seed battle is still to be won.

The surviving claims now need to be challenged as part of the larger movement against patents on life and patents on rice. The campaign against patent on rice is now being launched by the Research Foundation against patents held by Monsanto and Novartis, including patents on "Golden Rice".

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Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology
A-60 Hauz Khas New Delhi - 110016 India

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International Center for Technology Assessment
310 D Street NE Washington, DC 20002 USA