Press Release
January 13, 2009
Jeanne Debons, Executive Director PVMI
(541)318-1485
BEND, OR It was announced January 6, that starting at the beginning of 2010, new annual sub-license fees will be instituted for all seed growers using PVMI proprietary varieties. The fees have been reduced from $250 to $100 per year for Tri-State seed growers (ID, OR and WA) to grow one or more of the varieties. The new rate for all seed growers outside the Tri-State area will be $250 per year. This is reduced from $500 for those in the US and from $1,000 outside the US.
The new rate was instituted to encourage evaluation, development and utilization of Tri-State varieties outside the Pacific Northwest region. It is not unusual for a variety to perform exceptionally well in one region and not in others. The license fee has been reduced to remove an obstacle to more widespread evaluation. In the long run it is hoped that this will result in better adoption and an increased royalty revenue stream to PVMI and thus back to the Tri-State research program. In 2009 PVMI returned $100K of collected royalties to the Tri-State research and breeding program.
Randy Bauscher, an Idaho representative to the PVMI Board of Directors said "… In order to take advantage of the new varieties’ potential, they must be evaluated in many places, under many conditions. Only then will their performance determine their success and increase the return to the research program. With the current financial situation, the Universities and Tri-State research program have been affected by cuts in grants and funding so that more money will be needed in the future to keep the program delivering varieties of the caliber it has in the past, namely Ranger Russet, Umatilla, Western Russet, Alturas and others…."
PVMI is a non-profit marketing and administration organization for the Tri-State potato breeding program. It was established in 2005 by the three potato commissions of Idaho, Oregon and Washington State to promote new varieties as well as help communication and cooperation between the Universities, USDA Agricultural Research Service, industry and growers. Further information is available at www.pvmi.org.
For more information, contact Jeanne Debons, PVMI Executive Director, 541-318-1485; or email jeannedebons@msn.com.