Maximising the benefits of intellectual property for the Australian horticultural industry (HG04020)

This is a final research report from Hort Innovation’s historical archives. Please note that as these reports may date back as far as the 1990s, the content and recommendations within them may be superseded by more recent research.

What was it all about?

The Australian Centre for Intellectual Property in Agriculture (ACIPA) received funding from Hort Innovation (which was then Horticulture Australia Limited) for a project beginning in February 2005 and ending in May 2007. The project aimed to maximise the benefits of intellectual property for Australian horticulture industries by addressing the general lack of knowledge about the role that intellectual property law played, and had the potential to play, in the industry.

The key components of the project included:

• Provision of ongoing advice and support;
• Delivery of targeted IP Training Workshops to rural based audiences;
• Delivery of specialised IP Master Classes;
• Production and widespread distribution of IP Fact Sheets and Reports; and
• Production of a Best Practice Manual on the Commercialisation and Management of Intellectual Property.

The key outcomes of the project included:

• Advice and consultation provided to a broad range of industry representatives;
• Presentations to the then Horticulture Australia Limited Industry Forums;
• An industry focussed Teleconference;
• Articles written for industry newsletters;
• Delivery of:
  • 25 IP Seminars to growers throughout Australia which were attended by over 500 delegates; and
  • 2 IP Master Classes which were attended by 46 delegates;
• Production and dissemination of:
  • 6 IP Fact Sheets which were widely distributed at the IP Seminars and IP Master Classes and were available for download on the then Horticulture Australia Limited website;
  • a report Intellectual Property and the Commercialisation of Research and Development: A Guide for Horticulture Industries which was disseminated at the IP Master Classes and was available for download on the then Horticulture Australia Limited website; and
  • a report Plant Breeder's Rights and Patents for Plants: A Compendium of Key Case Law for the Horticulture Industries in Australia which would be disseminated to targeted horticulture industry representatives as well as being available for download on the then Horticulture Australia Limited website.

This project clearly demonstrated that there was a strong demand for further intellectual property education and training for the horticulture industries. The recommendations of this project were that there be ongoing education and training including targeted grower Intellectual Property Seminars, high-level Intellectual Property Master Classes and In-house Intellectual Property training for the then Horticulture Australia Limited staff.