From Cresco to the World: Norman Borlaug’s Legacy and the Global Impact of Plant Breeders’ RightsOctober 15, 2025

Norman Borlaug grew up in Cresco, Iowa, a small farm town, like so many in my home state.  Iowa’s 30-36 million acres of farmland sit atop rich glacial soils, and are combined with ideal rainfall and a temperate climate, all of which have made Iowa one of the national Agricultural leaders, producing abundant crops with no need for irrigation.   

In 2020, Cresco, Iowa boasted not quite 4000 residents, and indeed the name Cresco is Latin for “I Grow”.  How perfect!

From these humble beginnings, Dr. Borlaug would become named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential minds of the 20^th Century, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his accomplishments and his role in the “Green Revolution”.   He is the only agricultural scientist ever to achieve the award.  From his parents’ escape from food scarcity in Norway to a career dedicated to increasing the world’s food supply, Dr. Borlaug continues to inspire the world.

A Vision for Sustainable Agriculture

Dr. Borlaug championed rural infrastructure, agricultural research, and education, all of which he believed were essential for a new “green revolution” to lift the world’s remaining one billion people out of the misery of malnutrition and pandemic poverty.  

He foresaw biotechnology as an indispensable tool for the future: a way to enhance nutrition and increase yields while protecting the planet’s ecosystems.  He often stated that biotechnology was essential to face the crucial challenge to come with increasing population, how to achieve more production on less land. 

Dr. Borlaug’s vision is aligned directly with the mission of the International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties, an intergovernmental organization based in Geneva, Switzerland.  It  seeks to support the development of new varieties as an essential response to achieving food security and agricultural sustainability.   UPOV provides a framework for protecting new varieties of plants and securing rights thereto, thereby allowing breeder’s to obtain a return on their investment for developing varieties and for promoting economic development and infrastructure to meet the needs to farmers and consumers. 

With 75 members representing 94 different countries, all of which have enacted some form of Plant Breeder’s Rights, UPOV and its framework ensure that each country adopts  legislation with consistent standards and protections, such as a novelty grace period, famers saved seed exemption, breeder’s exemption, protection term, and deposit of propagating materials that are ultimately released to the public through public depositories.     

And the system delivers

The Proven Impact of Plant Breeder’s Rights

In 2022, a report issued  by the Community Plant Variety Rights organization (CPVR) found that the additional contribution to Gross Domestic Product generated by CPVR-protected crops amounted to 13 billion EUR.  Innovations relating to CVPR protected varieties supported over almost 90,000 jobs across the  arable, horticultural and ornamental sectors..

An article in Seed World https://www.seedworld.com/europe/2019/04/18/the-tremendous-impact-of-upov-membership-in-vietnam/ researched the impact in Vietnam after adoption of Plant Breeder’s Rights in 2007.  It found that there were increased opportunities for farmers through introduction of new plant varieties with higher yields, increased quality and better resistance to pests and diseases,  and this resulted in increased farmer income.  The growth of the agricultural and horticultural sector contributed to a higher economic prosperity at the national level. When looking at the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) across the entire economy, other studies showed that for three crops: rice, maize and sweet potato (Noleppa, 2017), there was an increase of $3.4 billion USD, which included the additional agricultural value and the additional generated GDP in upstream and downstream industries in Vietnam. The successes of plant breeding, following the country’s UPOV membership also added another $1.5 billion USD to the GDP value. In total, a GDP impact of around $5 billion USD annually could be calculated.

Carrying the Legacy Forward

It seems a full circle moment, that the Vice Secretary-General of UPOV, Yolanda Huerta, will speak at the 2025 Norman E. Borlaug International Dialogue, an International event, held annually in Des Moines Iowa, to honor Dr. Borlaug’s legacy.  MVS will sponsor a Deep Dive Session, entitled “From IP to Impact” discussing Plant Breeder’s Rights and documenting real world success stories with additional speakers from the USDA/PVP Office and Gates Ag One.

At MVS we are proud to help our clients secure Plant Breeder’s Rights around the world to protect the tireless efforts of plant breeders, those who continue to make Dr. Borlaug’s vision of a nourished and sustainable world, a reality.

Heidi Sease Nebel is Chair of the Biotechnology & Chemical Practice Group at McKee, Voorhees & Sease, PLC. For additional information please visit www.ipmvs.com or contact Heidi directly via email at heidi.nebel@ipmvs.com.