Does Plant Variety Intellectual Property Protection Improve Farm Productivity? Evidence from Cotton Varieties
Abstract
The plant variety protection (PVP) system has been criticized by
some authors as being nothing more than a marketing tool and
not having much effect on productivity. We investigate this issue
for the case of cotton in the United States, first by examining
trends in cotton varieties planted and then by quantifying the
effect of PVP varieties on cotton yields. Our analysis suggests
that PVP has led to the development of more varieties and that
these varieties have had an overall positive impact of PVP on
cotton yields.
Citation
AgBioForum, 8(2&3): 100-107.