the canadian plant breeders' rights act (the "act") which became law on june 19, 1990, grants the following exclusive rights to the holder of "plant breeder's rights" respecting a "plant variety":

	a) to sell, and produce in canada for the purpose of selling, propagating material (which is any reproductive or vegetative material for propagation, whether by sexual or other means, of a plant variety, and includes seeds for sowing and any whole plant or part thereof that may be used for propagation), as such, of the plant variety;
	b) to make repeated use of propagating material of the plant variety in order to produce commercially another plant variety if the repetition is necessary for that purpose;
	c) where it is a plant variety to which ornamental plants or parts thereof normally marketed for purposes other than propagation belong, to use any such plants or parts commercially as propagating material in the production of ornamental plants or cut flowers; and
	d)to authorize, conditionally or unconditionally, the doing of an act described in paragraphs (a) to (c).

the right to sell and produce does not apply in respect of the sale of propagating material that is not in canada when it is sold. plant breeder's rights normally last for a period of eighteen (18) years from the grant of the rights, subject to the payment of an annual fee for the upkeep of the rights.