California Berry Cultivars, LLC (CBC) a strawberry breeding company filed a lawsuit on May 2, 2016, against the Regents of the University of California. The lawsuit lists claims against the UC for breach of contract, conversion, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and unfair competition.
The filing of the complaint represents the frustration of CBC members after more than three years of unsuccessful discussions and negotiations revolving around the systematic demise of the world famous UC Davis strawberry-breeding program. Two of the CBC members are Drs. Doug Shaw and Kirk Larson, the celebrated former UC strawberry breeders who for over 30 years have helped maintain California prominence through their inventions of successful, publicly available breeds of strawberry varieties. CBC members came together after it was apparent that UC Davis officials had orchestrated a collapse of protocols and precedents in what should have been a well-conceived strategy of succession for the UC’s strawberry breeding program.
For reasons that the lawsuit hopes to discover, UC Davis administrators have denied the breeders rights and access to their own inventions of strawberry plant breeding material. UC officials have misled the industry and CBC members into believing that the core collection of strawberry breeding materials have been safeguarded and properly maintained. For over three years, CBC has worked to re-invigorate the stalled strawberry-breeding program through efforts to obtain non-exclusive access to the core strawberry materials created by Drs. Shaw and Larson and now held by the UC. The failure of UC Davis to establish a succession plan and the lack of continuity is creating hardships for all growers large and small who depend on improved strawberry varieties for their livelihoods.
CBC, which is comprised of veteran members of the California strawberry growing community, claims that the UC has damaged the commercial viability of its members, as well as the California strawberry industry by mismanaging one of the most prolific and successful public-private partnerships in U.S. Land Grant history. The company seeks equitable and monetary relief for injuries that have been, and will continue to be, caused by the UC’s incompetence and unlawful conduct.
However, UC Davis, in a prepared statement, denied that it has let the breeding program fade since Shaw and Larson’s departure.
“While we are still evaluating the legal claims raised in the lawsuit, we intend to defend against it,” the university said. “The University of California strawberry breeding program is a robust one, and we remain committed to maintaining the program as a public breeding program, available to all in the California strawberry industry.”
Strawberry varieties developed at UC Davis account for about half of California’s $2.6 billion-a-year crop.
For more information:
Nick Garcia
Platinum Advisors
Tel: (916) 443-8891