Quick Take | Monsanto wins legal battle for BT cotton seed technology

SC has overturned a judgment by the Delhi High Court which held that certain items such as seeds, plants and animals cannot be patented under Indian laws.

Ruchi Agrawal

January 08, 2019 / 14:10 IST

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Ruchi AgrawalMoneycontrol Research

Monsanto’s subsidiary Mahyco Monsanto Biotech (MMBL) has won a legal battle against Nuziveedu seeds to own patents on genetically modified (GM) cotton seeds in India. The Supreme Court has ruled that Monsanto’s patent for BT cotton seeds is valid, overturning a judgment by the Delhi High Court which held that certain items such as seeds, plants and animals cannot be patented under Indian laws.

The ruling comes after years of legal battle between Monsanto and domestic seed companies. While Monsanto had cleared disputes with three domestic companies including Kaveri Seeds, Ankur Seeds and Ajeet Seeds, eight other domestic players including Nuziveedu Seeds, Prabhat Agri Biotech, Pravardhan Seeds, Amar Biotech, Sri Rama Agri Genetics and others had refused to clear dues of Rs 450 crore.

While the judgement is positive for Monsanto that had been battling to get royalties for its BT cotton seed technology, it could mean an uptick in costs for domestic seed players due to higher pricing freedom to Monsanto and continued royalty payments. This could mean lower margins for companies, seed scarcity in domestic markets and could also give way to spurious seeds, negatively impacting yields.

Domestic companies get a license from Monsanto to sell GM seeds in exchange for a trait fee fixed by the government. This fee was reduced from Rs 49 per packet to Rs 39 per packet last year. Monsanto has pending cases against fixing the cotton price and trait fee by the government and the current ruling might strengthen Monsanto’s claims.