Canada
May 6, 2026
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has updated the Plant Breeders’ Rights Regulations to encourage innovation, investment, research and competitiveness in Canada’s agriculture, horticulture, and ornamental sectors. The updates will benefit innovators, producers, and consumers by reinforcing Canada’s intellectual property framework for plant breeders in support of a more competitive environment that will deliver new and improved plant varieties to market. The changes will also enhance food security through climate-resilient and high-yielding varieties that support stable domestic production and a reliable and affordable food supply for Canadians.
The updated Regulations will:
· Limit the farmers’ privilege for saving and re-using seed to small grain crops such as cereals and pulses, ensuring that plant breeders are fairly compensated for their work;
· Extend the term for plant breeders’ rights for potatoes, asparagus, and woody plants to 25 years, allowing breeders more time to recover their investment;
· Reduce administrative burden by streamlining processes and supporting digitization, encouraging more applications for plant breeders’ rights in Canada; and
· Make further administrative updates to align with the 2015 Plant Breeders’ Rights Act changes.
These enhancements will make it easier for both Canadian and international plant breeders to deliver high-yielding, climate resilient, pest- and disease-resistant crop varieties to Canadian producers. In turn, farmers will gain greater access to new crops, support sustainable and competitive agriculture, lower input costs and help ensure a reliable and affordable food supply for Canadians.
The publication of the final Plant Breeders’ Rights Regulations fulfills another commitment from the CFIA’s Progress Report on Red Tape Reduction.
Quotes
“Plant breeders play a crucial role in the advancement and sustainability of Canadian agriculture. Through their expertise in genetics, innovation, and crop improvement, plant breeders contribute significantly to food security and the competitiveness of Canada’s agricultural sector on the global stage. Their developments meet the evolving needs of farmers, consumers, and industry—supporting economic growth, environmental stewardship, and sustainability for generations to come.”
The Honourable Heath MacDonald, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Quick facts
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Plant breeders’ rights (PBR) are a form of intellectual property (IP) for plant breeders to protect new plant varieties in the same way an inventor protects an invention with a patent. Plant breeders’ rights offer plant breeders a finite economic monopoly on their new variety and restricts certain uses of the variety without authorization.
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The CFIA administers the Plant Breeders’ Rights Act and the Plant Breeders’ Rights Regulations, which provide legal protection to plant breeders. The Act sets out the conditions for the protection of plant varieties, and the nature of plant breeders’ rights. The supporting regulations are administrative in nature and set out requirements such as application requirements, prescribed periods of protection, assignment of rights, payable fees, and further clarify specific provisions of the Act.
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