In an agreement signed by CPVO President, Francesco Mattina, and the Rector of the University of Udine, Roberto Pinton, the CPVO and the University of Udine have agreed to join forces to train professionals specialized in the IP protection and development of new plant varieties.
The University of Udine has developed an excellent reputation and know-how in the creation of new plant varieties and is the Italian university with the highest number of community plant variety rights (CPVRs) granted by the CPVO – i.e. 25 CPVRs. In addition, 23 of these are subject of licensing agreements granted to Italian and foreign companies which are operating and distributing worldwide.
"This agreement with the University of Udine is an excellent opportunity to showcase and strengthen the important link between university research on plant varieties, a field in which the University of Udine is a role model" affirms President Francesco Mattina.
"The CPVO has always been committed to ensuring that the European system of plant variety rights favours scientific research in an effort to stimulate the creation of new and better plant varieties for the benefit of society and the environment. In this respect, the University of Udine is at the forefront for valorising such innovation in the field of new plant varieties through intellectual property rights", he said.
"Plant variety rights are a strategic element of the intellectual property generated by university research on new plant varieties – underlines Rector Roberto Pinton. A field in which our university has been committed for over 30 years in order to make agriculture more sustainable.”
“Thanks to this agreement with the CPVO, we will have the opportunity to bind scientific research and experimentation even more closely to the positive economic impact on the territory and to the training of our graduates and of professionals in a growing sector, also at international level", he concluded.
In practice, the agreement will make it possible to organise training and research activities. In particular, masters, training courses, educational initiatives and learning paths for students and professionals, with a direct involvement, as lecturers, of the experts of the Community Plant Variety Office, where graduates from the University of Udine will be able to carry out internships. Collaboration is also planned in research projects on intellectual property rights, in particular on plant variety rights, especially on the management and enhancement of intellectual property rights. The agreement also provides for the dissemination of research results and intellectual property themes.
New plant varieties and legal protection
Since 1998, the University of Udine has established 33 new plant varieties of wheat, sunflower, kiwi and wine vine. Of these varieties, 26 are protected with rights, in particular 25 with Community rights (2 sunflower, 8 kiwi,15 wine vine) and one with an Italian plant patent (kiwi). In addition, 7 varieties are registered in the National Register of Agrarian Varieties (6 sunflower, 1 wheat). A variety of sunflower and one of wheat have been licensed to Italian seed companies. Currently, the University of Udine has ongoing genetic improvement programs for vine, kiwi, apple, millet and buckwheat.
Last year, President Mattina visited the University of Udine, the Institute of Applied Genomics and the Rauscedo Cooperative Nurseries, where he witnessed the development and enhancement of new varieties of vine resistant to diseases, considering it an exemplary case of collaboration between public and private research.