BASF plans 5-year GMO potato experiment near Hill of Tara

meath | environment | news report

Sunday January 29, 2006 02:41

by Michael O'Callaghan - GM-free Ireland Network

mail at gmfreeireland dot org

http://www.gmfreeireland.org

+353 (0)404 43885

The German company BASF Plant Science GmbH (an affilate of the giant transnational chemicals and drugs company BASF) has notified the EPA of its intention to deliberately release GMO potatoes into the environment 9km south of the Hill of Tara, on a 2 Ha plot at Arodstown, Summerhill, Co. Meath. The site is located 2km north of the R156 road between Dunboyne and Summerhill (approx. OS grid reference: N 885 500). If given the go-ahead, this would be the first Irish release of GMO crops since protestors ended Monsanto's GMO beet trials in 1998. The Notification submitted by BASF does not appear to include plans for any environmental impact assessment. Farmers, environmental groups and consumers have expressed total opposition to this unwanted experiment which would terminate Ireland's economically valuable GM-free status. The deadline for related public submissions to the EPA is 5pm on 22 February 2006.

On 13 January 2006, BASF Plant Science GmbH (an affilate of the giant transnational chemicals and drugs company BASF) notified the EPA of its proposal to deliberately release GMO potatoes into the environment 9km south of the Hill of Tara, on a 2 Ha plot at Arodstown, Summerhill, Co. Meath.

The townland of Arodstown is located 2km north of the R156 road between Dunboyne and Summerhill, shown in the lower right corner of the Discovery Series map no. 42. Approximate OS grid reference: N 885 500.

View large area map: http://www.gmfreeireland.org//potato/map1.php
View local area map: http://www.gmfreeireland.org//potato/map2.php

The proposed five-year "field trial" experiment would take place from April 2006 to October 2010.

According the the documentation provided by BASF, the GMO potatoes in question have been modified by introducing the following mixtures of foreign genetic material:

• genes from a wild Mexican potato variety that provides some resistance to the late potato blight fungus Phytopthora infestans;

• marker genes from mouse-ear cress (a plant related to cabbage and mustard) that conveys tolerance to "Imazamox" herbicide (which contains banned Imidazolinones);

• two vector genes from a bacterium called Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

It appears that no environmental or health impact studies are planned.

Following an advertisement in the Irish Independent on 26 January 2006, the deadline for related public submissions to the EPA is 5pm on 22 February 2006.

Related documents found on the EPA web site (www.epa.ie) on 27 January 2006:

• Advertisement in the Irish Independent of 26 January 2006: http://www.gmfreeireland.org/potato/EPA/BASF/advertisement.doc

• Register of GMO Users in Ireland, Notification Ref. No. B/IE/06/01: http://www.gmfreeireland.org/potato/EPA/BASF/register.doc
(3-page Word document)

• Summary notification format for the release of genetically modified higher plants
According to Council Decision 2002/81/EC.
Notification number B/IE/06/01.
http://www.gmfreeireland.org/potato/EPA/BASF/summarynotification.doc
(4-page Word document from BASF Plant Science GMbH).

• Notification
for the release into the environment of genetically modified potatoes with improved resistance to Phytopthora infestans (2006 - 2010)
http://www.gmfreeireland.org/potato/EPA/BASF/notification.doc
(52-page Word document from BASF Plant Science GmbH.)

• General information note
in relation to the making of representations to the EPA
regarding a notification under the Genetically Modified Organisms (Deliberate Release) Regulations - S.I. No. 500 of 2003.
http://www.gmfreeireland.org/potato/EPA/BASF/infonote.doc
(2-page Word document from the EPA).

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Comments (2 of 2)

Reilly calls for GM application to be rejected

by sf

Tue Jan 31, 2006 17:49

Reilly calls for GM application to be rejected

Meath Sinn Fein Counciillor Joe Reilly has called on the Minister for Agriculture Mary Coughlan to prevent the granting of a license to a German company to grow genetically modified potatoes here. Councillor Reilly was responding to a report that BASF has applied to the Environmental Protection Agency to be allowed grow a trial crop at Summerhill, County Meath.

He saiid: "While no doubt Minister Coughlan will give her usual response that this is somehow not her responsibility, and that the relevant authorities will assess the application on scientific and safety grounds, she, as the Minister with responsibility for the reputation and health of Irish farming, has a duty to intervene.

"If GM crops are grown here, they will inevitably contaminate traditional and organic crops. There is no doubt about that from research that has been conducted.

"Three years ago I placed a motion before Navan Town Council rejecting the idea of GM foods been produced in Ireland. Navan Town Council fully supported my motion.

"I call on the the farming and consumer organisations to resist attempts to grow GM food in Co. Meath. The introduction of GM here will benefit no-one other than the companies which are attempting to control the food system. There is no demand from Irish farmers for GM, and no evidence that it will benefit either them or Irish consumers."

Basf is a derivative of I.G. Farban.

by jon

Sun May 20, 2007 06:32

Farmers and Peasants of Ireland do not be sucked into allowing Basf GMO's to grow in Ireland. This company was interlocked with Dow, Monsanto, and Dupont after the second world war, and derives from the Nazis I.G. Farban Monopoly of chemical warfare, along with Bayer, and Hoekest. These six companies have been waging a chemical warfare poisoning of the world, since that time to this. GMO' s from Monsanto are being contested and fined and thrown out by the peasant -farmers in India, Vietnam, China, Phillipines, Indonesia, Canada, U.S.A and etc throughout the world. In fact Monsanto was the leading monopoly providing agent orange in the chemical poison bombing of Indo-China where five million people were poisoned, and when the Vietamese recently took Monsanto to the Supreme Court of America the judges there found Monsanto not guilty, yet everyone knows that Monsanto did the majority chemical poison spraying in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. These companies are posing as agricultural experts to get monopoly rights over the farmers to take away the peasant-farmers rights to grow and plants their own seeds. That was proven in Canada and other countries , and their terminator seeds and other dominant seeds will take over all the designated food plants naturally grown in your area and then they will use the monopoly law to prove their seeds are better and dominant and the peasant-farmer, in law loses the right to grow their own seed. That is a freedom not worth losing. If Ireland still cares for freedom and has a spark to liberation they should throw the GMO's of Basf out and encourage the organic method of farming , for it is the natural way and best way to grow food and leave the soil with vitality for the comming generations. Viva social liberation.

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BASF plans 5-year GMO potato experiment near Hill of Tara

Comments (2 of 2)