Can you Patent Cannabis?
Good news for Plant Breeders, The Canadian Food Inspection Agency which administers the Plant Breeders' Rights Act (1990) and the regulations that provide legal protection to plant breeders for new plant varieties, has accepted its first application for a Cannabis Strain. Though the application was submitted in December 2013 it was 6 months before it was published. Big C, as it is called (Botannical Name: Cannabis sativa subsp. Indica) has a long way to go before rights may be granted. The process involves testing and plant trials, and site examinations, and the breeder must be able to show that the variety is new, and different from all other varieties. It must be uniform across all plants bred from the same stock and hold its genetic integrity through successive generations which takes time to prove.
There has been much kerfuffle in the news over the question of patents on cannabis, with the US Federal government in the middle of the debate. United States federal government officials have consistently denied that marijuana has any medical benefits, however US Patent 6630507 titled “Cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants” was obtained in October of 2003 and is assigned to The United States of America, as represented by the Department of Health and Human Services.
For patients, who rely on cannabis for medicine; tighter controls, and patented plants that guarantee accurate and consistent levels of THC and CBD, may be the biggest win of all.
| Denomination: | 'Big C' |
| Botanical Name: | Cannabis sativa subsp. indica |
| Applicant/Holder: | Griffin, Chris 1201 - 45 Balliol Street Toronto, Ontario M4S 1C3 Canada |
| Application Date: | 2013-12-24 |
| Application Number: | 13-8163 |
Source of chart: http://www.inspection.gc.ca
Author
Leigh Coulter
Leigh Coulter is the President of GGS Structures Inc. a leading greenhouse manufacturer with sales worldwide. Leigh holds a degree in business from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, and she has been asked to speak at numerous events regarding manufacturing and business development. GGS manufactures greenhouses for all crops, as well as manufacturing fabric covered buildings. After years of working with cannabis growers to improve medical marijuana cultivation technologies, and as part of the company’s strategic development in 2013 Leigh established a division within the company dedicated to the emerging legal cannabis industry, and as such GGS is on the forefront of the movement. As part of this division new people were brought into the company to expand the company’s knowledge in indoor controlled agriculture cultivation (CEA) as well. GGS was the first greenhouse manufacturer worldwide to actively promote cannabis cultivation in greenhouses through their website, brochures, and in the media. Leigh believes passionately in “doing the right thing” and that supporting people’s rights to choose how they take care of their bodies is fundamentally “the right thing”. Working with cannabis growers all over the world she has developed the utmost respect for people who want to perfect their craft, and grow their best plants, and everyone on the GGS team is delighted to be part of that mission.
