Patent application for harvest of high solids tomatoes

[frogsleap farm]

I found this interesting. Crossing to a specific S. hirsutum line allowed late harvest of wrinkled tomatoes with a very high solids (low moisture) content. The trait of interest apparently allows "drying" on the vine without microbial degradation.

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-P...S=PN/7,119,261

[Fusion_power]

Keep trying Frog, the link does not work yet. The patent number is enough to find it.

DarJones

[frogsleap farm]

Originally Posted by Fusion_power

Keep trying Frog, the link does not work yet. The patent number is enough to find it.

DarJones

Yeah, frustrating. I used this link on my blog and it works fine. I'll try something new.

[feldon30]

When you put a link into a blog or forum, the software displays those links shortened with "...". If you then copy that URL and paste it somewhere else, it's broken. You have to right-click on the link and choose "Copy Link Location". Then you get the real address.

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-P...1&RS=7,119,261

So it's Lycopersicon hirsutum, a wrinkled wild tomato, crossed with the garden tomato. I didn't know you could patent something that can happen accidentally in your backyard.

[maf]

Originally Posted by feldon30

So it's Lycopersicon hirsutum,.... crossed with the garden tomato. I didn't know you could patent something that can happen accidentally in your backyard.

Yes, it does sound a little close to biopiracy. I worry that indigenous farmers somewhere may have been growing something similar for decades and now find themselves in a situation where they could be sued for patent infringement.

[frogsleap farm]

The wild relatives of the tomato have been a rich source of useful genetic variation. Although S. hirsutum and S. peruvianum lack the attributes to make them an attractive crop plant per se, they have been a rich source of trait genes useful in tomato breeding - for example multiple disease resistance genes from related species have been transferred to cultivated tomato. There is nothing wrong with mining related relatives for useful genes. I'm surprised about the granted patent though - normally the USPTO does not allow the patenting of naturally occurring genes/traits.

[Fusion_power]

Technically, the patent is not for the trait involved. It is for the line that was developed with commercial fruit production that also expresses the fruit drying traits. But arguing it in court could be difficult.

Various available lines of tomatoes already express this drying trait to some degree. Stupice for example will shrivel as it dries. The same for Hires Rootstock.

DarJones