BASF suing Commission over GM potato delay

Ludwigshafen, Germany – BASF Plant Science has filed an action with the European Court of First Instance against the EU Commission for "unjustifiably delaying" the approval process of the cultivation of Amflora, the company's genetically improved potato. The action, said BASF, includes the period between July 2007 and May 2008 during which Commissioner Stavros Dimas did not adopt the approval for the cultivation of Amflora following the completion of all other procedural steps.

"EU Commissioners have postponed Amflora’s approval despite repeated positive safety assessments by EFSA, the European Food Safety Authority. Although we welcome some positive signs by the Commission and President Barroso, such as their commitment to base decisions regarding genetically modified products purely on science, we are not prepared to accept any further delays," said Dr. Stefan Marcinowski, a BASF executive director.

"We are filing this case in order to ensure that European farmers and starch producers get access to an innovative product that offers them a potential added value of more than €100 million annually. In addition, we estimate that failure to approve Amflora is depriving BASF Plant Science of peak license income of €20 to 30 million per lost cultivation season," said Dr. Hans Kast, CEO and President of BASF Plant Science GmbH.

Amflora is a genetically modified potato that produces pure amylopectin starch and is suitable for technical applications. Conventional potatoes produce a mixture of amylopectin and amylose starch. For many technical applications, such as in the paper, textile and adhesives industries, only amylopectin is needed; separating the two starch components is uneconomical.

According to BASF, Amflora produces pure amylopectin starch and thus helps to safe resources, energy and costs. Moreover, paper produced with amylopectin starch has a higher gloss. Concrete and adhesives can be processed for a longer period of time.