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This whole thing seems perfectly reasonable to me. The analogy between DNA code and computer code seems pretty direct. They made the code, they should get the r

This whole thing seems perfectly reasonable to me. The analogy between DNA code and computer code seems pretty direct. They made the code, they should get the rights to the software/fruit. Don't like it? Write/selectively breed your own fruit.

itisit 6y ago
You wouldn’t download an apple pie, would you?
pixl97 6y ago
How about no. I would rather have companies not make new breeds because of fear of theft than deal with lawsuits/enforcement of growing food.
- kbenson 6y ago
  To take this to the obvious parallel of software patents, patents get a lot of (deserved) criticism these days, but they exist for a reason, ans serve a purpose which I think is arguably still valid. Excessive patent length and patenting trivial things is bad. So is people stealing the hard work of others. There is a sane middle ground we should be shooting for, not wiping patents out entirely to the detriment of most (arguably all, in the long run).
  - nixonpjoshua1 6y ago
    Incidentally these types of plant patents AND software patents are the two categories that are patentable in the USA but not in most of the rest of the world, so they definitely straddle the line of patentability.
    - swimfar 6y ago
      Do you have a source for that? It looks like there are plant patents in the EU. https://www.mewburn.com/law-practice-library/plant-variety-rights-and-patents-for-plant-related-inventions https://www.mewburn.com/law-practice-library/plant-variety-r... https://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/node/285 https://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/node/285
- gruez 6y ago
  > than deal with lawsuits/enforcement of growing food. Is there a reason why food should be treated differently than any other manufacturing process, which is also patentable? Or are you against patents in general?
  - monadic2 6y ago
    I mean there's a lot of problems with patenting manufacturing processes. How do you argue this is a solid model for growing fruit?
- thotsBgone 6y ago
  *selling food Big difference

itisit 6y ago

You wouldn’t download an apple pie, would you?

pixl97 6y ago

How about no. I would rather have companies not make new breeds because of fear of theft than deal with lawsuits/enforcement of growing food.

kbenson 6y ago
To take this to the obvious parallel of software patents, patents get a lot of (deserved) criticism these days, but they exist for a reason, ans serve a purpose which I think is arguably still valid. Excessive patent length and patenting trivial things is bad. So is people stealing the hard work of others. There is a sane middle ground we should be shooting for, not wiping patents out entirely to the detriment of most (arguably all, in the long run).
- nixonpjoshua1 6y ago
  Incidentally these types of plant patents AND software patents are the two categories that are patentable in the USA but not in most of the rest of the world, so they definitely straddle the line of patentability.
  - swimfar 6y ago
    Do you have a source for that? It looks like there are plant patents in the EU. https://www.mewburn.com/law-practice-library/plant-variety-rights-and-patents-for-plant-related-inventions https://www.mewburn.com/law-practice-library/plant-variety-r... https://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/node/285 https://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/node/285
gruez 6y ago
> than deal with lawsuits/enforcement of growing food. Is there a reason why food should be treated differently than any other manufacturing process, which is also patentable? Or are you against patents in general?
- monadic2 6y ago
  I mean there's a lot of problems with patenting manufacturing processes. How do you argue this is a solid model for growing fruit?
thotsBgone 6y ago
*selling food Big difference