Biopiracy Under Fire: The Pelargonium Patent Hearing, January 2010
On the 25th and 26th January 2010, the ACB will give evidence at a hearing at the European Patent Office (EPO) in Munich, Germany. The hearing concerns a patent challenge by the ACB on behalf of a rural community in Alice, South Africa, in collaboration with Swiss NGO, the Berne Declaration. The patent being challenged is one granted to Dr. Willmar Schwabe GmbH and Company ('Schwabe') by the EPO on the 26th September 2002. The patent is in respect of a method for producing extracts of Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium reniforme to make Schwabe's blockbuster cough and colds syrup, Umckaloabo. The main claim in the patent is in respect of a procedure (percolation and maceration) for the production of an extract from the pelargonium using an aqueous-ethanol solvent (10-92% ethanol). This procedure is not only commonly used in the phytomedicine sector but also has for eons been used by traditional healers from the Alice community. The effect of the patent is to give Schwabe the exclusive right in the countries that are parties to the European Patent Convention (EPC) over the next 20 years, to make, sell or import/export the active ingredients of the pelargonium roots that have been extracted by water and alcohol.
In this briefing, we provide an overview of key issues for the patent hearing. These are drawn from the papers filed with the EPO for the ACB and Berne Declaration, Schwabe's response and the preliminary findings of the Opposition Division of the European Patent Office (EPO). We also provide an overview of the situation in South Africa concerning the Pelargonium species and the community we represent. In this regard, we provide pertinent information concerning the utilisation of the Pelargonium species, highlighting the extent of the decimation of both species and illegal harvesting. We also provide information of the players involved in the harvesting and trade in the species, and valuable data on Schwabe's profit margins. Finally, we deal with issues concerning the bioprospecting permit applications made in South Africa by Schwabe.
