bi ‧ o ‧ pi ‧ ra ‧ cy /ˌbaɪəʊˈpaɪərəsi $ ˌbaɪoʊˈpaɪr-/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable]
the process in which large companies try to get ↑ patent s on (=legal rights to) products that make use of plants, animals, ↑ gene s etc that were developed over many years by nature or by farmers, especially farmers in poorer countries