Plant Breeder's Rights in Western Australia

Some pasture cultivars are protected by Plant Breeder’s Rights under the Plant Breeder’s Rights Act 1994. Plant varieties subject to PBR can only be produced for sale by parties authorised by the breeder of the plant variety. 

The Western Australian Agriculture Authority has PBR over several protected cultivars as listed below. If you would like seed of one of these cultivars, please contact the relevant authorised licensee(s).

Unauthorised buying and selling of pasture seed 

Any unauthorised production, reproduction, conditioning, sale, offers for sale, import or export of protected pasture seed may be an infringement of the Act. It allows for both civil and criminal proceedings for infringement. 

As well as potentially being in breach of the Act when buying seed of PBR-protected cultivars from an unlicensed supplier (commonly referred to as 'over the fence' trading), there is also a greater risk of ending up with poor quality seed.  

Asking for evidence 

When purchasing any seed, it’s preferable to request a seed analysis statement that provides evidence of cultivar purity, together with the weed and germination status of the seed. This will give you greater peace of mind on what you’re buying.