The CPVO has granted Plant Variety Rights to South Africa’s fastest-growing apple variety, BigBucks Gala, following extensive trials across the EU
The owners of the South African Gala apple variety Big Bucks have said that some things in life are worth waiting for.
For BigBucks, that wait has lasted more than eight years – but has now culminated in an important international milestone.
The Community Plant Variety Office (CPVO) has issued decision number 73170 declaring BigBucks Gala as a qualifying variety for European Union Plant Variety Rights, following extensive replicated trials conducted across different sites and EU countries.
The decision marks a significant achievement for the South African-developed apple variety and opens the door for stronger protection of BigBucks Gala in the EU.
Big Bucks Gala, increasingly marketed under the Flash Gala brand, has gained acclaim in markets of the East and it is now the fastest-growing apple variety in South Africa
It was discovered on 18 January 2011 by industry pioneer Buks Nel, Tru-Cape’s new cultivar expert, in an established Corder Gala block at Oak Valley Estate in Elgin.
The tree was a chance mutation, a naturally occurring spot that developed as a single plant within a commercial apple orchard.
South African plant breeders’ rights were awarded to BigBucks Gala on 21 July 2011, after which plantings of the variety expanded rapidly.
By the end of winter 2025, over 2.5mn trees had been planted in South Africa, excluding additional grafted trees.
“BigBucks Gala is a remarkable South African apple story,” said Anthony Rawbone-Viljoen.
“What started with the discovery of a single, naturally occurring mutation in an Elgin orchard has developed into one of the most significant variety successes in our industry.
”To now have European Plant Variety Rights awarded after such an extensive evaluation process is a tremendous achievement,” he outlined.
To qualify for plant breeders’ rights, a product must possess characteristics that distinguish it from other varieties.
BigBucks Gala has several distinctive features. Its blossom is a dark red colour and its fruit stem is red, while fruitlets develop a red colour within the first month after blossom.
A central red vein is also visible on the back of each leaf.
Another important characteristic is the variety’s stability.
Many Gala varieties tend to revert to their original type, which can present challenges for growers and the long-term commercial development of a variety.
BigBucks Gala has, however, demonstrated strong varietal stability, with no reported reversions to date.
“Stability is a particularly important characteristic when you are building a variety at scale,” said Rawbone-Viljoen.
“The fact that BigBucks Gala has remained inherently stable, with no reported reversions, has been a major positive.”
The road to European protection began in 2016, when a Testing and Option Agreement was signed with ABCz Nursery in Belgium and an application for European Plant Variety Rights was submitted to the CPVO on 14 October 2016.
The process therefore proved considerably more complex than initially anticipated.
For the South African apple industry, the decision represents more than simply the completion of a lengthy regulatory process.
It provides international recognition for a variety that originated spontaneously in a South African commercial orchard and has since achieved high adoption among local growers.
