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Commercial rose production under protected cultivation. Breeders warn that safeguarding Plant Breeders’ Rights is essential to sustaining long-term investment in new rose genetics.
Innovation sits at the heart of the global rose industry. During the recent Valentine’s peak, more than 250 million rose stems were produced worldwide for the holiday alone, highlighting the sector’s commercial scale. Yet leading breeders warn that a rise in the illegal propagation and trade of protected varieties is undermining the legal and commercial frameworks that support long-term investment in new genetics.
This February, members of the International Rose Breeders Association (IRBA), a crop section of CIOPORA — the global association representing breeders of asexually reproduced ornamental varieties, issued both a press statement and an open letter addressed to unpackers, importers, and traders of cut roses. Their message is clear: respect for Plant Breeders’ Rights (PBR) is essential to protecting innovation, ensuring fair competition, and safeguarding the integrity of the entire supply chain.
Developing a new rose variety is a long-term investment. According to CIOPORA, it can take eight to ten years of breeding work to bring a single variety to market, combining advances in colour, fragrance, vase life, disease resistance, and sustainability performance.
As logistics chains lengthen and sustainability targets tighten, breeders face increasing pressure to develop varieties suited to sea freight, reduced chemical inputs, and better climate resilience. This innovation depends on effective royalty systems and legal protection frameworks.
“Innovation in horticulture depends directly on how well we protect the work of plant breeders,” said Dr Edgar Krieger, Secretary General of CIOPORA.
Yet IRBA members report more cases where protected varieties are propagated and commercialised without the breeder’s or titleholder’s authorisation.
In their open letter, breeders stress that infringements may originate at the production level, but the impact travels across the entire value chain — including unpackers, importers, traders, and retailers.
Under Plant Breeders’ Rights legislation, breeders hold the exclusive right to propagate, sell, and commercialise protected varieties. Cut flowers originating from unauthorised propagation are considered illegal in the country of production and in countries where they are imported or marketed.
The potential consequences are significant. Flowers may be stopped at customs, seized at points of sale or storage, or face legal action for PBR infringement and trademark misuse.
For importers and traders operating in high-volume seasonal windows such as Valentine’s Day, these risks carry commercial and reputational implications.
More than 250 million rose stems are produced globally for Valentine’s Day alone, highlighting the commercial scale that depends on protected breeding innovation. Image: CIOPORA.
IRBA’s signatories, including major global rose breeders such as Dümmen Orange, Meilland International, Rosen Tantau, Interplant, Schreurs, and others, are urging greater due diligence across the trade.
The letter calls on all actors handling cut-rose varieties to verify the flowers’ origin and ensure the planting material is properly licensed. Where doubts arise, breeders encourage direct contact to confirm authorisation status.
Jelle Posthumus, Chair of IRBA, emphasised that the issue goes beyond legal compliance. Respect for PBR underpins fair competition, trust within the supply chain, and the long-term sustainability of breeding programmes.
For a sector increasingly focused on sustainability metrics, climate resilience, and supply chain transparency, breeders’ message is that intellectual property protection remains a foundational element of responsible trade.
As seasonal demand peaks around Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and other key floral moments, and global rose volumes move through complex international logistics networks, IRBA’s intervention raises a broader question for the industry: how robust are current verification systems, and who ultimately bears the risk when protections fail?
The full statement issued by CIOPORA and IRBA members can be accessed via CIOPORA’s website.
For further analysis on Plant Breeders’ Rights and compliance in the ornamental sector, see FloraCulture International’s November 2025 special focus on PBR and IP protection.
