ADVOKS GLOBAL · KENYA
Seeds and Plant Varieties Act
9. Performance trials and reports
Edition: 2022-12-31 · In force
9. Performance trials and reports
(1)The Cabinet Secretary may, in consultation with representatives of such organizations as he deems to have a substantial relevant interest in the matter to be regulated, make regulations for the carrying out of national performance trials, and may by order apply such regulations to any class of plant varieties within the national varieties list and to any new varieties in that class.(2)For the purposes of this section, a plant shall be deemed to be a new plant variety if it was not on the national variety list on the date of the coming into operation of an order under subsection (1), unless it had been exempted under subsection (3).(3)The Cabinet Secretary may, on an application from any person and on being satisfied that seed of a plant variety, although not in the Index, was in commercial use in Kenya before the order under subsection (1) of this section came into force, exempt that plant variety from the provisions of this section.(4)Subject to the provisions of this section, it shall be an offence—(a)to sell seed of a new plant variety to which this section applies; or(b)to advertise any such seed for use,until seed of that plant variety has been submitted for the purpose of performance trials in accordance with this section, and until a report on the result of such trials has been published in the prescribed manner, and this subsection shall apply whether or not an offer or advertisement relates only to sales after the trials and report.(5)Subsection (4) of this section shall not apply to a sale of any seed which is not in Kenya when the sale is made but, subject to the provisions of this section, where a person has acquired seed of a new plant variety to which this section applies, being seed which was not in Kenya when he acquired it, he shall be guilty of an offence if, in the course of business, he—(a)uses any of that seed in Kenya as reproductive material at any time when, under subsection (4) of this section, it is unlawful to sell seed of that plant variety; or(b)at any time so disposes of any of that seed, otherwise than by way of sale, while it is in Kenya as to make it available for use in Kenya as reproductive material.(6)Subsection (4) of this section shall not apply to any sale of the kind described in subsection (3) of section 8 of this Act and subsection (5) of this section shall not apply to the use of seed for the purpose of carrying out tests or trials.(7)If it appears to the Cabinet Secretary that a new plant variety to which this section applies has undergone performance trials and that an adequate report of the result of those trials is generally available, or that there is any other sufficient reason for exempting such variety from the provisions of subsections (4) and (5) of this section, he may direct that those subsections shall cease to apply to seed of that plant variety, but without prejudice to any liability for any offence previously committed.(8)For all new plant varieties to which this section applies there shall be a time limit by which, so far as practicable, the report on the result of the performance trials is to be published, and if such report is not published within such time limit, subsections (4) and (5) of this section shall cease to apply to seed of that plant variety, but without prejudice to any liability for any offence previously committed.(9)The time limit in respect of an annual crop for the purposes of subsection (8) of this section shall, except so far as seeds regulations may otherwise provide for any class or part thereof, be three seasons from the date on which the performance trials commence.(10)Entries made in a section of the national variety list after an order under this section has come into force in relation thereto shall—(a)be made in such a manner as will distinguish those entries from all earlier entries, and as will indicate which of the later entries relate to plant varieties exempted under subsection (3) of this section; and(b)contain additional entries showing when subsections (4) and (5) of this section have ceased to apply to seeds of the plant varieties concerned.(11)Without prejudice to any other provision of this Part, seeds regulations may provide—(a)for the manner of making applications under subsection (3) of this section, and of making applications for submitting plant varieties for performance trials;(b)for the information to be afforded by an applicant and the materials to be submitted at the time of application or subsequently;(c)for the manner in which reports are to be published and brought to the attention of those concerned;(d)for the compiling of a register of applications for the submission of seeds for performance trials, of the reports of the results of such trials and of the dates of publication of the reports, and for including entries which will show the date when the time limit under subsection (8) of this section will fall;(e)for requiring the publication of notice of any direction under subsection (7) of this section and of any class where a report is not published within the time limit under subsection (8) of this section;(f)for the payment of fees in respect of matters under this section;(g)for the conduct and management of performance trials and reports.(12)Reference in this section to advertising are references to advertising in any medium, including sound and television broadcasting, but do not include the communication of information in any publication for scientific purposes or purposes of research.