When new technology, scientific methods or plant varieties are developed at Cornell, legal protections are often required to safeguard their creation. Securing patents and plant variety rights is the first step in transforming scientific breakthroughs into farm-ready crops.
Today, Cornell ranks in the top 20 of universities in the United States in the number of patents granted, according to the National Academy of Inventors. In 2024 alone, 107 United States patents were issued to Cornell researchers and 477 licenses and commercialization options were granted across the University system.
These inventions are legally protected under intellectual property laws by a dedicated team bringing innovation to consumers — which is the Center for Technology Licensing at Cornell.
Since the University's founding, over 290 apple, grape, berry and vegetable varieties have been developed and many have been patented at research stations across New York.
This includes some of the most commercialized crop varieties that have emerged from Cornell’s fields including Butternut and Honeynut squashes, SnapDragon and RubyFrost apples and the DMR 401 Cucumber — which is the first cucumber variety equipped to combat the new strain of Downy Mildew, which caused an agricultural pandemic on the East Coast.
These varieties have become essential tools for successful orchards and fields. Some plant breeders at Cornell, such as Prof. Courtney Weber, horticulture, specialize in breeding berry crops like strawberries, raspberries and blackberries.
He said the journey from research to commercialization for plant breeders has a meticulous timeline.
“It’s a long-term process,” Weber said. "The moment you announce a variety’s availability is only the beginning.”
Last September, Cornell released raspberry varieties in partnership with Weber. Varieties like Crimson Beauty have market-friendly traits, such as being a fall-bearing raspberry that produces larger, more productive fruit starting in late July. This variety offers consumers more fruit throughout summer and fall. Similarly, another release, Crimson Blush, extends the raspberry production window from June to November, providing a longer period of locally grown fruit.
Seeds for Weber’s varieties were developed in 2016 and 2017, followed by seven years of crop field trials. Finally, in 2024, the varieties were released to PhyllaTech, LLC and North American Plants, which now have licenses to propagate the plants for raspberry growers to use this spring.
Weber worked with the Cornell CTL office to license his crops, which secures the intellectual property of scientists' work, through patents, trademarks, or copyright guidance.
“There’s a one-year window [following the first sale] to complete the application for patent protection," Weber explained.
Under his licensing agreements, profits from a variety on the market are distributed: one-third to the college, one-third to the scientists and one-third to the CTL office, in accordance with University Policy 1.5.
“Our standard model is the release of non-exclusivity, which respects our status as a land-grant university,” said Emily Courson, business development & licensing associate for plant variety and research material at the CTL. She said that opening the products to anyone on the market, non-exclusivity, is a revenue-sharing model that supports Cornell's innovation ecosystem as they work to achieve “maximum public benefit.”
The timeline of each plant breeder's development process varies, ranging from one growing season for a crop like tomatoes, to four to five years for fruit trees that require significantly longer evaluation periods, Courson explained. Once varieties are developed on Cornell property, they must be tested by farmers and other companies, where the CTL office prepares official material transfers to grant access for entities to use the Cornell-developed varieties.
When preparing for a release, the team models how they expect the variety to compare with existing ones on the market. According to Courson, patents are the most sought-after legal protection, but they are not the only option.
“We don’t patent every plant variety that comes into the office. Some can be protected contractually or through trademark rights. Patenting is just one method we consider,” Courson said.
In the industry, 20-year plant patents for asexually propagated plants, or offspring created genetically identical to its parent in order to retain unique characteristics, are registered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sexually reproduced plant varieties, or crops that require pollination, can receive Plant Variety Protection.
Trademark rights are another tool used to maintain quality control of brands for up to ten years. Geneva apple rootstocks, one of Cornell’s trademarks with international influence, support trees that produce over 50 percent of the apples grown globally.
While the privatization and commercialization of plant varieties operate within a business ecosystem, they can sometimes limit farmers' market access. Plant breeders must balance protecting new scientific developments with ensuring accessibility, depending on their breeding program goals.
“Developing varieties takes several years, even decades,” Courson explains. “In order to incentivize continued research and development, we need financial assurance that the varieties we develop will not be stolen and that there will be a return on investment.”
The goal of patents, as stated under the Copyright Clause of the United States Constitution, is “To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries.”
Courson reflects on the role of licensing plant varieties, emphasizing that it not only advances science but also “maintains Cornell's position as a leader in agricultural innovation while fulfilling its land-grant mission.”
Jake Zajkowski can be reached at jwz29@cornell.edu.
