Plant Improvement Act, 2018 (Act No. 11 of 2018) 1. Definitions

 

In this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise—

 

‘‘agent’’

means a person, domiciled and resident in the Republic, who has been duly authorised by the breeder of a variety to act on his or her behalf for filing an application for national listing;

 

‘‘applicant for national listing’’

means the breeder of a variety who makes an application for national listing in terms of section 28;

 

‘‘authorised person’’

means a person, other than an employee, authorised in terms of section 3(5)(a);

 

‘‘breeder’’

in relation to a variety contemplated in section 28, means—

 

‘‘business’’

means the business contemplated in section 9;

 

‘‘cleaning’’

in relation to seed means the removal of other material and other seed from propagating material, either manually or mechanically, in order to improve the general quality thereof;

 

‘‘conditioning’’

in relation to propagating material of a plant variety, means—

undertaken for the purposes of preparing the material for cultivation and sale;

 

‘‘denomination’’

in relation to a variety entered in the national varietal list or the regional varietal list, means the denomination contemplated in section 33 that has to be used at all times in connection with the plants and propagating material of the variety in question;

 

‘‘Department’’

means the Department responsible for agriculture;

 

‘‘designated authority’’

means the authority contemplated in section 45(6)(a);

 

‘‘employee’’

has the meaning ascribed to it in section 1 of the Public Service Act, 1994 (Proclamation No. 103 of 1994), but does not include an employee contemplated in the definition of breeder;

 

‘‘kind of plant’’

means a group of plants of the same taxon;

 

‘‘label’’

means the piece of paper, plastic or fabric attached to a plant or container containing the prescribed information regarding the identity and source of the plant or propagating material in the container; and ‘‘labelling’’ and ‘‘labelled’’ have a corresponding meaning;

 

‘‘laboratory’’

means a facility where plants and propagating material are tested, examined or analysed in respect of the physical or biological property thereof or the occurrence of insects or pathogens thereon or therein or the elimination of pathogens for reward or for marking and labelling for purposes of selling;

 

‘‘mark’’

means the written or printed identification of the plant on a marker or of the contents of a container on a label affixed to such container; and ‘‘marked’’ and ‘‘marking’’ have a corresponding meaning;

 

‘‘Minister’’

means the Minister responsible for agriculture;

 

‘‘national listing’’

means the inclusion of a variety denomination in the national varietal list;

 

‘‘national varietal list’’

means the list kept in terms of section 24;

 

‘‘nursery’’

means a business where plants or propagating material is propagated and grown for sale;

 

‘‘pack’’

means to pack propagating material or cause it to be packed into containers which are sealed and branded, marked or labelled in the prescribed manner with the prescribed information;

 

‘‘plant’’

includes any part of a plant;

 

‘‘premises’’

means premises contemplated in section 10;

 

‘‘pre-pack’’

means to pack propagating material into containers of limited size mostly for sale at retail outlets, which complies with the prescribed requirements, in the mass or quantity prescribed in respect thereof, the containers being in compliance with the prescribed requirements, sealed and branded, marked or labelled in the prescribed manner with the prescribed information;

 

‘‘prescribed’’

means prescribed by regulation;

 

‘‘propagating material’’

means any reproductive or vegetative material of a plant from which, whether alone or in combination with other parts or products of that plant, another plant with the same characteristics can be produced;

 

‘‘regional varietal list’’

means the regional varietal list maintained by the designated institution of the Southern African Development Community;

 

‘‘Registrar’’

means the person contemplated in section 3(1);

 

‘‘regulation’’

means a regulation made in terms of section 58;

 

‘‘scheme’’

means a certification or other scheme established in terms of section 45;

 

‘‘sell’’

includes—

 

‘‘this Act’’

includes the regulations;

 

‘‘trademark’’

means a registered trademark in terms of the Trade Marks Act, 1993 (Act No. 194 of 1993);

 

‘‘variety’’

means any plant grouping within a single botanical taxon of the lowest known rank, which grouping can be—