Some background on the Gujarat farmer-Pepsico war
What is this hot potato, anyway? Potato cultivar FL2027 patent holder is Frito Lay North America Inc. This is the same name under which it was registered (2016) under the PPV&FRA, 2001, India as an “extant variety” or “variety about which there is common knowledge, VCK.” The key point is that, under the PPV&FR Act, farmers have the right to act as they traditionally have, before the act came into being, i.e., saving, sharing, sowing seeds.
Points of law in the PepsiCo potato case Biswajit Dhar, Business Line, 08 May 2019
An explanation of the legal issues in the PepsiCo case De-Coding Indian Intellectual Property Law — Shalini Bhutani, SpicyIP, 21 April 2019
Cottage Industry: Online primers for competitive exams…
Gujarat farmer-Pepsico war – Ongoing Story
2021 12 04 PepsiCo loses rights over Lays chips potato variety for which it sued Gujarat farmers “The authority ruling came over a petition filed by farm activist Kavitha Kuruganti, contending that the grant of the certificate of registration to PepsiCo India was based on incorrect information furnished by it. She has also contended that the intellectual property right (IPR) granted to PepsiCo India on a potato variety was not as per provisions laid down for registration and was against the public interest. Moreover, the certificate of registration has been granted to a person who is not eligible for protection under the Act and the breeder (PepsiCo) did not provide the Registrar with such information, documents or materials as required, as per her petition. PPV&FR has consented to Kuruganti’s submission and said the grant of the certificate of registration was based on “incorrect information” furnished by the applicant.” The News Minute
2019 11 27 Protesting farmers sow potato variety registered by Lays India Today
2019 05 27 Opinion Time India Lay’s eyes on Pepsi potato case First Post
2019 05 26 Opinion Farmers’ rights in peril Orissa Devinder Sharma Post
2019 05 18 Opinion Tuber of contention “It can have far-reaching consequences for farmers’ rights under the law, seed sovereignty and even livelihoods.” EPW
2019 05 17 Opinion Paywall Lays- Potatoes, PepsiCo, IPR and farmers’ rights BloombergQuint
2019 05 16 Opinion Bt brinjal fiasco (paywall) Business Standard
2019 05 14 Opinion Farmers’ rights a hot potato “The fallout between US major PepsiCo and Gujarat’s potato growers underlines the looming threat to farmers’ rights in India over ownership of seeds” Down To Earth
2019 05 13 Opinion PepsiCo controversy: Globally, India has always refused to give in on IPR on plant varieties Shalini Bhutani The Wire
2019 05 13 Making contract farming suitable for farmers Financial Express
2019 05 12 Subsistence farmers in India beat PepsiCo’s legal team in a fight over potatoes Not all quite “subsistence” and AIFF is a football federation, but … Quartz
2019 05 11 PepsiCo withdraws potato lawsuits against remaining nine farmers Indian Express
2019 05 11 Opinion Caught in the potato skirmish PepsiCo’s retraction from its lawsuit marks the triumph of partisan motives and not farmers’ interests. EPW
2019 05 10 A big win for Gujarat potato farmers as PepsiCo withdraws all cases against them News18; PepsiCo withdraws all cases against potato farmers The Hindu; PepsiCo withdraws lawsuits against Indian potato farmers “Came under political pressure from PM Modi’s ruling BJP” Reuters; Press Release from farmers Kisanswaraj.in; PepsiCo India withdraws lawsuit But not the end of the story (Beej Adhikar Manch) Smartinvestor.in; PepsiCo withdraws case “According to BAM, if PepsiCo would not tender apology to farmers with a month’s time and also wouldn’t give compensation of Rs 1 (in principle) for harassing potato growers, they would file counter litigations against the multinational in the same courts where it had filed legal suits against potato growers.“Financial Express
2019 05 08 Need assurance we won’t be sued again “After PepsiCo decided to withdraw cases filed against potato farmers in Gujarat, one would assume that dust has settled on the matter once and for all. Instead, potato farmers are still fuming because the state government did not consult them or the cultivators before meeting PepsiCo and arriving at a settlement.” The Quint
2019 05 06 Pepsico vs potato farmers Rajya Sabha TV; PepsiCo versus potato farmers Vakilsearch.com
2019 05 06 Different varieties of potato don’t look very different — Why register an already patented variety under PPV&FRA? …”There is still research involved, considering environmental and other factors that affect cropping pattern and productivity” Indian Express
2019 05 06 Farmers warn Gujarat over any PepsiCo ‘deal’ The Telegraph India
2019 05 06 It’s a battle for a market that isn’t small potatoes Economic Times
2019 05 05 Gujarat govt offers to play umpire; suggests PepsiCo India make it a party to contracts with farmers FirstPost
2019 05 05 Farmer bodies say Gujarat siding with PepsiCo on potato, warn of protests DNA India
2019 05 05 Opinion Pepsico and Monsanto’s bogus court cases is a war on Indian farmers People’s Democracy
2019 05 04 Story so far: Chips at state in the PepsiCo-farmers fight. The Hindu
2019 05 04 Farmers worried PepsiCo-govt talks will dilute their rights The Hindu
2019 05 04 Gujarat to ask farmers to not grow ‘PepsiCo potato’ without firm’s nod Indian Express
2019 05 04 Opinion Make room for diversity on the food front Tribune India
2019 05 03 PepsiCo case: Gujarat farmers seek compensation, demand unconditional withdrawal of court cases (formation of Beej Adhikar Manch) BusinessLine; Gujarat potato growers want compensation The Siasat Daily
2019 05 03 Congress will work to strengthen patent laws: Rahul PTI
2019 05 02 Opinion PepsiCo’s attempt to sue farmers highlights the lacunae in IPR laws — Who is the rightful owner of the potato variety, FL 2027? Is it the farmer who bought, planted, harvested the potatoes from his own farm, or is it the innovator who cross-bred and modified the potato to have a low moisture content for crispier chips? The Indian Express
2019 05 03 Potato farmers hit back at PepsiCo, seek compensation for harassment – Call for nation-wide boycott of PepsiCo products, want unconditional withdrawal of legal case. Business Standard
2019 05 02 PepsiCo-potato farmers row: Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture opposes Gujarat Govt’s out-of-court settlement Business Line
2019 05 02 Opinion: Civil society body warns of dilution of farmers’ rights as Gujarat government attempts to settle Pepsi-farmer dispute — Vinay Mahajan, a farmers’ rights activist said, “The government must stand by the letter and spirit of the act, which clearly states farmers’ rights over breeders’ rights” Business Today
2019 05 02 PepsicCo vs Farmers: Out-Of-Court Settlement a Disservice to Farmers, Says Farmers’ Rights Group — Gujarat government should ensure that there is absolutely no compromise on farmers’ rights and seed sovereignty, says ASHA Newsclick
2019 05 01 PepsiCo sues potato farmers: US firm is right in enforcing its IPR, but slapping Rs 1 cr law suit is bad optics First Post
2019 04 30 Opinion PepsiCo farmer lawsuit is a misguided action Live Mint
2019 04 30 What is this potato that PepsiCo is obsessing over in India? Quartz India
2019 04 30 Opinion Hey Pepsico — enforcing IPR is ok — suing farmers for 1 crore is not The Quint
2019 04 30 Opinion How PepsiCo exploited the law in its potato fight against Gujarat farmers CNBCTV18
2019 04 29 Experts, seed industry differ over PepsiCo lawsuit against Gujarat potato farmers Business Line
2019 04 27 Gujarat govt. to back potato farmers in PepsiCo fight The Hindu
2019 04 27 Gujarat govt. to back potato farmers in PepsiCo fight The Hindu
2019 04 27 PepsiCo has a potato issue with farmers ET
2019 04 26 Now, PepsiCo offers to settle case against Gujarat potato farmers. The Hindu
2019 04 26 PepsiCo Back-Pedals, Offers Out-of-Court Settlement to Farmers in Potato Case — PepsiCo had filed a civil suit against four farmers, alleging that they were “illegally dealing” in a type of potato plant that had been registered by the company The Wire
2019 04 26 Pepsico vs farmers: MNC proposes out-of-court settlement to potato growers — PepsiCo sued nine Gujarat farmers early in April for growing its patent potato variety FC-5. The company claims exclusive rights over this variety in India Financial Times
2019 04 26 PepsiCo Sues Gujarat Farmers For Growing Potato Variety Used In Lays; Court Passes Injunction[Read Order] “Under Section 64, a registered variety can be cultivated only by the registered breeder or its licensee, and cultivation of the same by anyone else will constitute infringement, leading to penalties. However, Section 39 of the same Act allows a farmer “to save, use, sow, resow, exchange, share or sell his farm produce including seed of a variety protected under this Act” so long as he does not sell “branded seed” and Section 42 protects “innocent infringement” by farmers who were not aware of existence of registration of the seed variety.” Live Law
2019 04 25 Clashing clauses Millennium Post
2019 04 25 Potato farmers cry foul as PepsiCo sues them The Hindu
2019 04 24 Pepsi India sues nine Gujarat farmers for ‘rights infringement’, activists and unions extend support News18
2019 04 24 Farmers groups ask Government to step in to assert farmers rights in PepsiCo Vs. Gujarat Potato Farmers Kisan Swaraj
2019 04 21 De-Coding Indian Intellectual Property Law SpicyIP