Geoff Tansey, a leading intellectual property and agriculture researcher and co-founder of the academic journal Food Policy, co-edited a new book examining a rarely-explored side of intellectual property legislation: its effects on access to food. The book, The Future Control of Food: A Guide to International Negotiations And Rules On Intellectual Property, Biodiversity And Food Security, brings together experts on various aspects of intellectual property and agricultural production to discuss the ways in which farming and biodiversity protection are being incorporated into international intellectual property legislation. The book explores how a changing IP system might affect the future of plant genetic resources, and in turn the future of food production and access.
Intellectual Property Watch spoke briefly with Tansey about the project on 21 January alongside a recent negotiation on access and benefit sharing under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. Listen to our conversation here.
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