> can we find a way to reward the farmers who genetically engineered this plant by selecting for the strongest individuals for the last several thousands years?

> can we find a way to reward the farmers who genetically engineered this plant by selecting for the strongest individuals for the last several thousands years? In a very concrete sense we cannot, because the people who did it are dead. We're really talking about rewarding (the people we presume to be) their descendants. Is that something we would do in a completely European context? For example, if we found a strain of worm-resistant apple that had been growing in a particular suburb of Manchester since before anyone's grandma could remember, would you consider giving patent rights to anyone who had a tree in their back yard?