Plant Variety Protection: Marketing New Plant Varieties by Protecting Plant Breeders' Innovations

Plant breeders use plant variety protection as an important marketing tool that protects their innovation. The AMS Plant Variety Protection Office (PVPO) provides intellectual property protection to breeders of varieties of seed and tuber (potatoes) propagated plants that are new, distinct, uniform, and stable. Based on the Plant Variety Protection Act, we examine new variety characteristics in order to grant certificates that protect varieties for 20 years (25 years for vines and trees).

View the PVPO Factsheet (pdf)