Chapter 06 · Governance & regulationRegulation & International Instruments
Biopiracy
Definition
The unauthorised appropriation of biological resources (plants, animals, microbes, genetic material) and/or associated traditional knowledge — especially from biodiversity-rich developing countries — by corporations, researchers or institutions, often through the intellectual property system, without prior informed consent of source communities and without fair and equitable sharing of benefits. The term was coined by Canadian activist Pat Mooney in 1993.
References
Definition; Pat Mooney 1993 coinage; typology (patenting traditional knowledge vs genetic resources); neem, turmeric, Hoodia, basmati examples; biopiracy-vs-bioprospecting distinction.
Exploitation of bioresources and traditional knowledge without consent constitutes biopiracy; CBD 1992 response.
Overview
What it means
Biopiracy names the exploitative edge of bioprospecting: the line between the two is consent plus benefit-sharing. Canonical cases include patents over neem and turmeric properties long documented in Indian traditional knowledge, and the Hoodia appetite-suppressant case in Southern Africa.
The concept drove the access-and-benefit-sharing (ABS) architecture of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Nagoya Protocol.
How it is used
The term frames advocacy and legal critique of patent claims on genetic resources and traditional knowledge; it informs ABS contract negotiations, disclosure-of-origin requirements in patent law debates at WIPO, and due-diligence expectations for companies sourcing natural ingredients.
Why it matters
Biopiracy crystallises the equity dimension of the biodiversity economy: genetic resources and indigenous knowledge generate major commercial value, and whether source countries and communities share in it is a defining test of just conservation and trade.