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Oct. 31, 2012 Agri-Pulse reports: An agreement to address the transition of commercial biotechnology events as they go off patent will officially open for signatures this afternoon. The "Accord" agreement, developed by Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), is a voluntary, but legally binding contract. Matt O'Mara, BIO's director of international affairs in food and agriculture, said he expects a broad response by trade and seed companies. Development on the agreement began in 2010, while the first biotechnology trait to go offpatent, Monsanto Roundup Ready soybeans, is set to expire in 2014. The Accord will contain two agreements: The Generic Event Marketability and Access Agreement (GEMAA) and the Data Use and Compensation Agreement (DUCA), both of which are voluntary, but binding among signatories. The agreement released this week, GEMAA, is the first installment of the Accord and allows entities to sign a binding agreement to allow access and require the transfer of responsibility and maintenance of regulatory approvals. The step is particularly important due to the nature of international regulations, which vary and apply to single and stacked traits. Both agreements will cover all commercialized U. S. patented biotechnology events of Accord signatories that are within four years of patent expiration. According to O'Mara, officials are confident they will have at least four signatures from the start, which is the minimum requirement for the contract to become effective. While not all interested entities may be ready to sign the Accord right away, he said he "hopes to see the body of signatures grow over time." Tweet |
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