Technical Trends of Plant Breeding Technologies Based on Patent Applications

Abstract

This study examines the technical details and trends of plant breeding technologies by analyzing patent applications. The study uses text mining for patent application date of Monsanto and Syngenta from 2000 to 2017 for the following results. First, there has been rapid improvement in genome editing technologies, which enable the generation of new traits from endogenous genes. Especially, the two companies focus on R&D in genome control and regulation, which are necessary techniques in using genome editing technologies. Second, there has been a rapid increase in plant varieties with environmental tolerances to drought, cold, and nitrogen to counter the effects of climate change.