That's actually an European directive, and each member state has its own adjacent laws, such as Germany [1]. The German seed protection laws and authority is pretty old, predating the EU - the founding year is 1953 [2].
I was furious when this directive was implemented in UK law. The only plant/seed varieties that could be traded were those on an official list, whose contents would inevitably be dominated by a few huge companies.
I don't know how the directive came about, but it smells like heavy commercial lobbying.
The UK government has been too busy campaigning against itself since Brexit, to reverse the UK implementation. It's high time.
I don't know how the directive came about, but it smells like heavy commercial lobbying.
The UK government has been too busy campaigning against itself since Brexit, to reverse the UK implementation. It's high time.