Orchardists in Ehime prefecture have invested heavily in the new Beni Princess citrus, a premium fruit that took two decades of cross‑breeding to develop. Ryohei Mori and his wife Kyeong‑hui Choi ripped up 200 trees on their five‑acre farm and took out a loan to build greenhouses for the new variety, hoping to sell the first harvest next spring.
Potential seed theft
Japanese media report that seedlings of the Beni Princess are already being offered on Chinese e‑commerce platforms, despite the variety’s intellectual‑property application still pending. Choi expressed alarm at the prospect of the fruit being “stolen,” while acknowledging that little can be done without government action.
Why plant varieties are hard to protect
Unlike movies or songs, plant varieties are difficult to enforce across borders. A breeder must register the variety separately in each country where protection is sought, and what counts as infringement can vary widely. Japan recently passed legislation to curb illicit export of homegrown varieties, and China has tightened its seed‑protection laws, but enforcement remains a challenge.
Past losses illustrate the stakes
Japan’s experience with the Shine Muscat grape shows the financial impact of missed protection. After failing to register the grape abroad, Chinese and South Korean farms began selling it at a fraction of the Japanese price. Agriculture Minister Norikazu Suzuki estimates the loss at about ¥20 billion ($127 million) in missed royalties each year.
International examples
Similar disputes have arisen elsewhere. In the United States, a Chinese national was convicted in 2016 for stealing corn seed trade secrets from DuPont Pioneer and Monsanto. New Zealand’s kiwifruit giant Zespri won a court order and a multimillion‑dollar judgment against a Chinese‑born grower who smuggled its Sungold variety to China.
Calls for action
Ehime’s governor has asked the national government to investigate the alleged smuggling, and Agriculture Minister Suzuki called the issue “particularly serious.” Experts say stronger regional cooperation and faster registration under the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) could help safeguard breeders’ investments.
For now, Japanese growers like Mori and Choi must hope that legal measures keep pace with the shadow trade in seeds, protecting both their livelihoods and the country’s agricultural innovation.
Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.
