The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017

Regulation 2(1) and 16(1)

SCHEDULE 3 Registration of varieties

Registration

1.—(1) Subject to paragraphs 6 and 7, the Department may register a variety with an official description if satisfied that the variety is distinct, uniform and stable (within the meaning of paragraphs 8 to 10).

(2) The Department must base acceptance that a variety is distinct, uniform and stable on the results of official measures, particularly growing trials, carried out in respect of the variety by or on behalf of—

(a) the Department;

(b) a responsible authority elsewhere in the United Kingdom; or

(c) a responsible authority in any other member State.

(3) The Department may register a variety that has been marketed within the European Union prior to September 2012 with an officially recognised description.

Application for registration with an official description

2.—(1) An application for registration of a variety with an official description must be made in writing to the Department in such form as the Department may require.

(2) An application must be accompanied by—

(a) the information required in a technical questionnaire at the time of the application or, where no technical questionnaire is available in relation to the relevant species, such information as the department may require;

(b) information on whether the variety is officially registered elsewhere in the UK, in another member State, or is the subject of an application for such a registration;

(c) a proposed denomination;

(d) such other information as the Department may require.

(e) where applicable, an application may be accompanied by details of an official description established by a responsible authority elsewhere in the United Kingdom or in another member State.

(f) where a growing trial is required, a sample of the material of the variety must be submitted on request.

Growing trials

3.—(1) Growing trials must—

(a) establish whether a variety is distinct, uniform and stable (within the meaning of paragraphs 8 to 10;

(b) be conducted, as regards trial design, growing conditions and characteristics of the variety to be covered, in accordance with—

(i) CPVO protocols;

(ii) where no protocols have been published for the relevant species, UPOV guidelines; or

(iii) in the absence of CPVO protocols and UPOV guidelines, protocols produced by the Department.

(2) Growing trials are not required if the Department is satisfied an official description submitted in accordance with paragraph 2(3), or information submitted along with the official description, demonstrates the variety is distinct, uniform and stable (within the meaning of paragraphs 8 to 10).

Duration and renewal of acceptance

4.—(1) Registration of a variety is valid—

(a) in the case of a genetically modified variety, for the period for which the genetically modified organism of which the variety consists is authorised for cultivation pursuant to Directive 2001/18/EC or Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003;

(b) in any other case until the end of the 30th calendar year from the date of registration.

(2) Subject to sub-paragraphs (3) and (4), the department may, on the basis of a written application, renew the registration of a variety for a further period of 30 years provided—

(a) the requirements of distinctness, uniformity and stability are still satisfied in respect of the variety;

(b) there is still material of that variety available.

(3) In the case of a genetically modified variety, registration may only be renewed for the period for which the genetically modified organism concerned continues to be authorised for the cultivation pursuant to Directive 2001/18/EC or Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003.

(4) The Department may renew the registration in the absence of a written application where satisfied renewal serves to preserve genetic diversity and sustainable production.

Removal from register

5.—(1) The Department must revoke the registration of a variety if—

(a) it is no longer distinct, uniform or stable;

(b) there is no longer available any material of that variety that is sufficiently uniform or which corresponds to the description of the variety at the time of registration;

(c) false or misleading information material to registration was provided to the Department in connection with the application for registration;

(d) in the case of a genetically modified variety, the genetically modified organism of which the variety consists ceases to be authorised for cultivation pursuant to Directive 2001/18/EC or Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003.

(2) But sub-paragraphs (1)(a) to (c) do not apply if the Department is satisfied that the variety should remain on the register in the interests of preserving the genetic diversity of varieties.

Additional requirements for genetically modified varieties

6.  Before registering a genetically modified variety, the Department must be satisfied that the genetically modified organism of which that variety consists has been authorised pursuant to Directive 2001/18/EC or Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003.

Additional requirements for products to be used as genetically modified food or feed

7.—(1) This paragraph applies to any variety from which products are derived for use as, or in—

(a) food within the scope of Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003; or

(b) feed within the scope of Article 15 of that regulation.

(2) Before registering any such variety, the Department must be satisfied that the food or feed has been authorised pursuant to that Regulation.

Distinctness

8.  A variety is distinct if it is clearly distinguishable by one or more characteristics that result from a particular genotype or combination of genotypes, from any other variety whose existence is a matter of common knowledge at the time of the application for registration.

Uniformity

9.  A variety is uniform if, subject to the variation that may be expected from the particular features of its propagation, it is sufficiently uniform in those characteristics which are included in the examination for distinctness, as well as any other characteristics used for the variety description.

Stability

10.  A variety is stable if those characteristics which are included in the examination for distinctness, as well as any others used for the variety description, remain unchanged after repeated propagation or, in the case of micropropagation, at the end of each cycle.

Interpretation

11.  In this Schedule—

“CPVO” means the Community Plant Variety Office, being an agency of the European Union(1);

“CPVO protocol” means a protocol produced by the CPVO for distinctness, uniformity and stability tests’ in relation to the relevant species that is available at the beginning of the growing trial;

“Directive 2001/18/EC” means Directive 2001/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms and repealing Council Directive 90/220/EEC;

“Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003” means Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council on genetically modified food and feed(2);

“technical questionnaire” means the technical questionnaire set out in—

(a)

Annex II to the ‘Protocols for distinctness, uniformity and stability tests’ produced by the CPVO for the relevant species for which such a protocol has been published; or

(b)

where no protocol has been published by the CPVO for the relevant species, in the relevant section for the relevant species contained within the ‘Guidelines for the conduct of tests for distinctness, uniformity and stability’ (UPOV test guidelines) of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) and the Annex to the test guidelines concerned for the relevant species for which such guidelines have been published;

“UPOV” means the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, being an intergovernmental organisation established by the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants(3);

“UPOV test guidelines” mean test guidelines for the conduct of tests for distinctness, uniformity and stability that have been produced for the relevant species by the UPOV that are applicable at the beginning of the growing trial.

(1)

The Community Plant Variety Office manages the European Union system of plant variety rights and is located at 3 boulevard Marechal Foch, CS10121, 49101 ANGERS CEDEX 2-France.

(2)

OJ L 268, 18.10.2003, p.1; last amended by Regulation (EC) No 298/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 97.9.4.2008, p.64).

(3)

UPOV is located at 34, chemin des Columbettes, CH-1211 Geneve 20, Switzerland.