Induced institutional innovation: Plant variety rights, patents and genetic engineering

Abstract

Abstract The operation of Plant Variety Rights (PVR) can lead to unexpected consequences. Issues of current interest include the government's role under PVR with respect to genetic conservation, public breeding and variety evaluation; farmers’ rights’ in germplasm in centres of genetic diversity; and the potential impact of genetic engineering on a plant breeding industry with PVR, and especially the interaction of patents with PVR. A useful way of investigating issues associated with the evolution of PVR systems is to consider PVR as an institution, and to investigate causes of ‘institutional innovation’. Ruttan's theory of induced institutional innovation explains evolution in terms of changes in relative factor and/or product prices; the effect of new technologies on income distribution; the effect of changed income distribution on the allocation of resources to maintaining and/or creating institutions; and exogenous institutional innovations spawning subsequent institutional developments. The methodol...