Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture: Council conclusions - Main contents

On 9 October 2017 the Council adopted conclusions, setting out the EU's position for the seventh session of the governing body of the international treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (ITPGRFA), which will take place in Kigali (Rwanda) from 30 October to 3 November 2017.

The conclusions focus on some of the key themes of the event, namely the role of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the review of the multilateral system of access and benefit-sharing and of the funding strategy established by the treaty.

In the conclusions, the Council calls on the governing body of ITPGRFA to enhance the functioning of the existing multilateral system, expand its scope and improve its funding. It also underlines the significant contribution of farmers and local communities to the conservation and development of plant genetic resources, and the importance of the treaty's provisions on 'farmers' rights'.

Background

The international treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture was adopted on 3 November 2001 by the 31st session of the Conference of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and entered into force on 29 June 2004.

The EU and its member states are contracting parties to the international treaty, which establishes a global system to provide farmers, plant breeders and scientists with access to plant genetic material for food and agriculture and aims to ensure, through a multilateral system of access and benefit-sharing, that recipients share the benefits they derive from the use of this genetic material with the countries in which the material originates.