Today, ASA joined the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Corn Growers Association in signing the Generic Event Marketability and Access Agreement (GEMAA). The GEMAA is part of an accord that represents a solution to ensuring critical domestic and international regulatory authorizations are maintained for biotech events once patents expire. The Accord consists of two agreements: the GEMAA and the Data Use and Compensation Agreement (DUCA). The GEMAA is now effective and in the process of implementation. The legal text of the DUCA is near completion.

"Having the Farm Bureau, ASA and NCGA as signatories to the GEMAA is a major step forward for the Accord," said Cathleen Enright, Executive Vice President at BIO. "All three organizations have been key players in the development of the GEMAA and we welcome their commitment to the Accord process."

"We’ve aimed to create an agreement that would enable national farm organizations to participate, so growers can have a role in the process and get access to important information about patent expiration and these organizations have been key stakeholders from the beginning of this process," said Andrew LaVigne, President and CEO of ASTA.

"Since ASA was one of the producer organizations that urged the biotech and seed industries to develop a predictable roadmap for biotech events to go from patented to generic, we thought it only appropriate for ASA to sign onto the GEMAA," said ASA President Danny Murphy. "Additionally, the GEMAA provides signatories like ASA with important advance notifications by other signatories about when patented events will expire, and gives us a seat at the table regarding the ongoing implementation of the GEMAA and whether changes should be considered in the future. ASA appreciates the work that went into developing the GEMAA, and we are pleased to become a signatory to it."

More information about the Accord can be found at www.AgAccord.org.