Climate change and beverage raw materials

Patenting barley: where does nature end and invention begin?

When it comes to the patentability of plant varieties, there is a hierarchy of identification methods that progresses from purely natural landraces, which are not patentable, to completely unnatural varieties, such as GMO varieties, which are patentable. It is the gray area of gene editing that is causing controversy. A legal dispute over the patenting of barley before the European Patent Office (EPO) gives an idea of the far-reaching consequences this could have for the brewing industry.

Released on 05/06/2024