In 1961, led by European countries, a number of states adopted the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, under which the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) was established in Geneva. Currently there are 68 members, consisting of the EU and 67 individual states, including the US.
以歐洲國家為首的其他國家，則在 1961 年制訂「植物新品種保護國際公約」（UPOV），目前 UPOV 已有包括美國在內的 68 個簽約國。