The Delhi High Court has ruled in favor of PepsiCo, allowing the US-based company to claim a patent for a specific potato variety used in its Lay's potato chips. This ruling overturns a previous decision from July 2023, which had supported the revocation of the patent by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights (PPVFR) Authority in 2021.
The court dismissed the objections raised by Kavitha Kuruganti, a farmers' rights activist, who argued that the company should not be allowed to patent a seed variety. The court's judgment stated, "The appeal of PepsiCo is allowed... The renewal application as made by PepsiCo shall stand restored on the file of the Registrar who shall dispose of the same in accordance with law."
PepsiCo established its first potato chip plant in India in 1989, supplying a specific potato seed variety to a group of farmers who sell their produce exclusively to the company at a predetermined price. The court also dismissed Kuruganti's concerns that PepsiCo's lawsuits against farmers were against public interest.
Source: moneycontrol.com