The British Crop Production Council (BCPC) has taken steps to stamp out possible patent infringements by some generic agrochemical manufacturers at the annual Crop Science and Technology Conference.

This year’s event, which will be held in Glasgow in October, will see a generic exhibitor ‘zone’ create to concentrate all generic manufacturers in one area. All promotional material will also be inspected, with offending material removed before the exhibition.

BCPC explained that the steps are being taken following infringements in 2005 and 2006 by Chinese generic manufacturers at the exhibition, relating to the promotion of pesticide active ingredients for which there were no patents in China. However sales were being made in the UK where some patents still had at least a year to run.

This led to the ejection of two exhibitors in 2005 following legal action by leading agrochemical manufacturers.

BCPC’s Dr Colin Ruscoe said: “BCPC will continue with its policy of allowing a limited number of generic companies to participate - provided they are free to promote their products. It should be emphasised that the inclusion of generic manufacturers reflects the overall trend of the industry and it is important that both the diversity and quality of exhibitors, and the services they provide, are maintained.”

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