Genetic Ownership

[SuperPeacockman]

Hey,
So I have raised cornish crosses in the past and I know they usually don't make it to breeding age, and they don't breed true but on the off chance one made it to breeding age and I wanted to experiment with breeding them would there be any issues with genetic ownership. I know a lot of other agricultural products belong to a corporation and breeding/reproducing them is illegal, is that the case with cornish crosses?

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

I don't believe so, because Cornish crosses are produced with a specific (secret) set of four grandparent lines. Whatever you did with Cornish crosses yourself would be unique/different from what they do to produce them. There are a number of folks working on using Cxs as a foundation to create a sustainable meant chicken. One is Ralphie - I'll tag him.

@duluthralphie

 

[duluthralphie]

Subscribe ..will discuss in AM

 

[chickengeorgeto]

If anyone "OWNED" the rights to a Cornish Cross bird they would need to patent the blood line. To win a patent they would have to apply at the patent office and reveal all the "SECRETS" of the ins and outs of the genes of the breed. Furthermore in most cases after 35 years anyone could produce identical "Cornish Cross" birds but because the words "Cornish Cross" is Trade Marked" another name needs to be chosen. Coke a Cola has been produced and marketed since at least 1886 and still no one knows for sure the exact recipe for a bottle of coke.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Commercial hatcheries buy chicks consisting of crosses from two (two different hen and two separate rooster lines from the company who own the name "Cornish Cross" and then they further cross these 4 blood lines together to produce the birds that they then sell as "Cornish Cross". Go back and read or re-read "Fire Ant Farm's" post.

 

[duluthralphie]

I find it hard to believe the name "cornish cross" can be patented. Any bird crossed with a cornish is a cornish cross. It is like patenting the name "green grass"... Cornish is the adjective describing the noun "cross". It is a "cross" period..

However, even though I like tilting at windmills, I did not tilt this windmill very hard. I call my crosses "toads".

I am in the 5th generation of them now. It was my own cross to the Cornish crosses. I did manage to keep them alive long enough to breed. It has been an uphill battle. I have gotten the "toads" out to other farms so the genetic material is not lost in case of a crisis here.

I think I have improved on the CX's. I have a longer life expectancy and larger birds with more dark meat. We processed one for Christmas and it dressed out at 15 1/2 pounds with no giblets.

 

[SuperPeacockman]

Ralphie thats very interesting, is there a post about your project I could read?

 

[duluthralphie]

Ralphie thats very interesting, is there a post about your project I could read?

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/toad-raising.1152440/