Author : Krattiger, Anatole F.

Summary : All commercialized Bt crops are by the private sector which is not surprising considering that 410 Bt-related patents were issued over the last 11 years: just over half of Bt related patents were granted to institutions in North America, 30% to European and Russian organizations, and 18% to companies mainly from Japan; of the total patents, over half are directly relevant to transgenics; and fifty-seven percent of all Bt patents have been issued to only eight companies. An analysis of commercialized Bt crops and of recent field trials demonstrates that a subset of these eight corporations are the major players in transgenic Bt plant technology, viz. Monsanto, Novartis, AgrEvo and Mycogen with their own technologies, and DeKalb Genetics Corporation and Pioneer Hi-Bred International through strategic alliances. The most advanced products include cotton, corn/maize, potato, tomato, canola/rapeseed and tobacco, and approximately 20 corporations are advancing their own products. This large number of companies working on Bt (partly under license) demonstrates that few major players who own enabling technologies are willing to license despite the fact that 23 lawsuits on Bt are pending. These are not restricting the technology from being commercialized, but will determine who receives the largest portion of royalties.