The Court of Appeal of Catania ratified the 15,000 euro fine and one year in prison sentence imposed on a tomato producer for the illegal breeding of a protected tomato variety. The conviction is based on the crime established in the second paragraph of article 517ter of the criminal code, related to the “manufacture and sale of products that violate industrial property rights”, specifically for the usurpation of a community plant breeder’s right, FreshPlaza informs.
The case was initiated by the Anti-Infringement Bureau for IP Rights on Plant Material (AIB) and was carried out by lawyers Nicola Novaro and Rossella Pola, arising from a complaint filed with the Guardia di Finanza (GdF).
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Investigations by GdF officials revealed the presence of illegally reproduced tomato plants in four different greenhouses. Genetic test carried out by the CREA, an official Italian laboratory, confirmed their genetic conformity with the protected variety.
The defendant was unable to provide documentation confirming the legal origin of the tomato plants, resulting in his initial conviction by the Court of Ragusa.
Ignacio Giacchi, director of the AIB, expressed his satisfaction, highlighting that the appeal ruling represents an important milestone for the protection of plant breeders’ rights in criminal proceedings. Giacchi also highlighted that, under the Criminal Code, the growth of a patented variety reproduced by stumps or regrowth (asexual reproduction) without the owner’s authorization was also considered illegal and a crime.
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