The main change you will notice is in the Material Transfer Agreements that govern shipments of rice germplasm (which means seed or any other organs, tissues or extracts that contain functional units of heredity of rice). Shipments of rice germplasm (Oryza species) are now normally be subject to the terms and conditions of a new Standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA). This will apply to shipments from you to IRRI as well as from IRRI to you. The SMTA will replace the Interim FAO MTA currently in use for accessions held in trust in the Genetic Resources Centre, the IRRI MTA for improved lines bred at IRRI, and the 3rd Party MTA for improved lines bred elsewhere and sent to IRRI.
The SMTA is much more detailed than the previous MTAs, but the overall intent is essentially similar. We have attempted to summarise your rights and obligations under the SMTA, but for full details you must examine the SMTA itself. The major differences from the Interim MTA are:
- You are not permitted to use the germplasm for chemical, pharmaceutical and/or other non-food/feed industrial uses. You may use or conserve it only for the purposes of research, breeding and training for food and agriculture.
- If you use the germplasm to create, protect and commercialize an improved variety or other product, you may be liable to pay a percentage of your sales to the Governing Body.
- You have to report certain uses and actions to the Governing Body.
All other components of germplasm exchange with IRRI remain unchanged:
- You have to comply with national regulations in your country and in the Philippines: e.g. you may need an import permit, export permit, phytosanitary certificate, or other declaration
- IRRI’s Seed Health Unit remains the single point of entry and exit of germplasm to and from IRRI, and ensures compliance with the procedures
- If you have any doubts about the procedures, please consult the Seed Health Unit.
The procedure is as simple as we can make it while complying with all relevant laws and agreements.
The only change you will notice is in the MTA itself and the rights and obligations you agree to. As before:
- Address requests for genebank accessions to the Genetic Resources Centre, and requests for improved materials to the INGER coordinator.
- You must read the MTA and notify us in writing (email is fine) that you accept its terms and conditions before we can send you seed
For simplicity and efficiency, IRRI encourages use of the SMTA for all shipments of rice to IRRI. It will consider alternatives only in special cases.
If you wish to send rice to IRRI, you will need to determine whether use of the SMTA is obligatory, optional or prohibited for the material you wish to send. The first step in determining this is to find out whether your country is a Party to the Treaty. If you don't know, look up the FAO's current list of Parties. Your country is a Party if it is listed in the table with a date under one of the columns headed "ratification", "acceptance", "approval" or "accession". Ignore the column headed "signature" - signing the Treaty is an earlier part of the process of developing the Treaty: signing the Treaty is not part of becoming a Party to the Treaty.
Sending germplasm from Treaty Parties
If your country is Party to the Treaty, all public domain rice germplasm in your country is part of the multilateral system. This means your country has to allow you to send it to IRRI with the SMTA, for the purposes of conservation and use for research, breeding and training for food and agriculture. You do not need to seek further authorization from your government - you are already authorized to send it, provided you comply with your country's relevant export and phytosanitary regulations.
You are also "encouraged" to include all rice genetic resources that you hold, even if they are not in the public domain. This means you are also free to send them, and if you do you must send them with SMTA.
You should be aware that the Governing Body is required to assess the extent to which individuals and organizations within their jurisdiction facilitate access to the genetic resources they hold, in order to decide whether to continue to facilitate access to them. If you fail to facilitate access to the rice genetic resources that you hold, the Governing Body may choose to prevent you from gaining access to genetic resources held by others.
Note also that the Treaty makes special provisions for "PGRFA under development". Generally breeding lines as well as other germlasm should be accessible under the SMTA.
Sending germplasm from non-Parties
If your country is not Party to the Treaty, you are of course not obliged to comply with its provisions. However, you can still voluntarily send germplasm using the SMTA, provided you have any necessary authorization that may be required.
- If you wish to send germplasm that you previously received under the SMTA, then you are legally obliged by the SMTA to facilitate access to that germplasm using the SMTA - you are free to send this material, and you must send it with the SMTA
- If you wish to send traditional varieties or wild relatives that are under the sovereignty of your country in accordance with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), you will need to seek authorization from your country’s designated national competent authority for germplasm exchange under the CBD.
- If you wish to send breeding lines that you have developed yourself, in most cases you would have the authority to choose for yourselve to send them with the SMTA.
- If you wish to send breeding lines developed by others, in most cases you would need to consult with the original breeder.
- If the original breeder is in a country that is Party to the Treaty, then use of the SMTA would be the normal solution, consistent with the breeder's status in relation to the Treaty
- If the original breeder is in a country that is not Party to the Treaty, then use of the SMTA would be normally be voluntary at discretion of the breeder
In all cases, please note that the easiest solution is to use the SMTA in all cases - because that means we can include the germplasm equally in the overall programme of conservation and use of genetic resources for sustainable development with the fair and equitable sharing of benefits. You just have to make sure you are authorized to use the SMTA.
For further information, contact Ruaraidh Sackville Hamilton
