Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 7, 1 July 2006 — UH ends kalo patents [ARTICLE]

UH ends kalo patents

The controversy surrounding the University of Hawai'i's three patented varieties of kalo has ended, after the school filed official documents to relinquish its rights over the breeds. In 2002, the university obtained the last of three separate patents from the U.S. government for its new varieties of kalo, whieh are the progeny of crossbreed-

ing between a Palauan variety and the Maui Lehua variety. The new varieties are supposed to be more resistant to diseases, such as pocket rot and leaf blight, that have contributed to the staggering decline of the poi industry. But some Hawaiians spoke out against the patents because they had not been consulted and because they believe it is wrong to patent any form of a plant that is traditionally considered an ancestor of the Hawaiian people. Hawaiians protested the patents for several months, building a stone altar in front of UH President David McClain's office in lune and later chaining shut the doors of the UH medical school when the university's Board of Regents had a meeting there. Before deciding to end the patents, the university offered to transfer them to Hawaiian groups, but the groups declined, saying they didn't believe the varieties should be owned by anyone. Now that the university has released the patents, the public ean use the breeds without paying royalties.

NŪ HOU • NEWSBRIEFS