Jun 25, 2004

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Deliberate release trials of starch potatoes in Golm:

Potatoes destroyed

(25 June) In the early hours of 22 June unknown perpetrators completely destroyed a trial field of genetically modified potatoes. The Max Planck Institute for Molecular Plant Physiology in Golm near Potsdam had been conducting basic trials of starch formation in potatoes there.

Destroyed. Every plant in the trial was pulled out of the ground. The trial covered an area of approximately 150 square metres. A maximum of 800 potato plants can be planted in any one year.

The aim of the five-year trial, approved by the Robert Koch Institute, was to test potatoes which produce more starch as result of a newly inserted gene in field conditions.

The gene is derived from the legume Lotus japonicus and affects the system for transporting and storing oxygen. Earlier greenhouse trials indicated that when the oxygen supply is improved in this way, starch formation in the tubers increases.

The current phase focuses on fundamental issues of starch formation in potatoes. The long-term objective is to produce potatoes that are even more suitable for use as renewable raw materials in the starch industry than those that are currently available.

The Max Planck Institute made detailed information about the release trial available to the public. Both the municipal advisory council in Golm and Potsdam city council had discussed the plans and approved them by a majority vote. The institute regularly invited interested parties to visit the trial fields with the slogan “Komm ins Beet” (Step into the garden!).

Despite the total destruction of this year’s trial, the institute aims to repeat the trial next year. It also intends to continue its proactive policy of informing the public and conducting tours of the field.