News
GMO-contaminated maize/corn seeds sold and grown
A German seed dealer sold about 13 million GMO-contaminated maize/corn seeds from a US producer in several German federal states and six other European countries. Some of the seeds have already been sown. German authorities were first made aware of the case by Hungarian inspectors. Neither the authorities nor the seed dealer himself noticed the contamination.
The “Sweet Wonder” variety sweetcorn contaminated with about 0.1 percent by two genetically modified Bayer/Monsanto corn/maize events [Maisevents] was already planted in several German federal states. By the time the first case in Baden-Württemberg was noticed in early June, the seeds had already been delivered to Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Bavaria, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia and were sown there. Several affected fields were already ploughed up.
In response to an inquiry from the Genetic Engineering Information Service (Informationsdienst Gentechnik), the competent federal agency, the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (Bundesamt für Verbraucherschutz und Lebensmittelsicherheit BVL), stated that, based on its current knowledge, the Lower Saxon company, Agri-Saaten, also delivered corn from the contaminated batch to Belgium, France, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Russia. However, its investigations have not yet been completed. It is not yet known whether contaminated sweetcorn seeds – and therefore genetically modified corn/maize – was planted in these countries. The cultivation of the two genetically modified corn/maize events is not permitted in Europe. However, their import has been permitted for about ten years.
“It is good that the authorities reacted quickly and comprehensively after the case became known via Hungary”, commented VLOG Managing Director Alexander Hissting. On the other hand, it is alarming that German inspectors completely missed the contamination in their inspections. “There is obviously some catching up to do in the inspection system. Genetically engineered plants are widely distributed throughout the USA, Canada and South America. Therefore, contamination is very likely there. That is why we must intensify our checks. The ‘Ohne Gentechnik’ food industry relies on dependable protection from GMOs. That applies to ‘old’ and ‘new’ genetic engineering. Therefore, we now urgently need methods of detecting products of the new genetic engineering – The German Government and the EU Commission must ensure that such methods are readily available and are utilised”.
Genetic Engineering Information Service: Contaminated sweetcorn sown in six German federal states
Süddeutsche Zeitung: Company unwittingly sells genetically modified maize/corn
LIZ: GMO-contaminated maize/corn apparently did not reach Saxony