Law 'may stifle German science'

A new law passed by Germany's parliament that strictly regulates genetically modified (GM) crops will almost certainly stifle innovation and trigger an exodus of GM scientific research from Germany, according to a top official of the German Research Foundation (DFG). The new legislation comes after a spring planting season filled with increasingly public—and contentious—skirmishes between Germany's robust environmental movement and frustrated scientists over the issue of GM crops. The new law had the strong support of German Agriculture Minister Renate Kuenast, a member of the environmentally friendly Green Party, which is the junior governing coalition partner of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's SPD Party. Kuenast described passage of the bill as a success for consumer protection and the rights of non-GM farmers who fear crop contamination from adjacent GM fields. Jörg Hinrich Hacker, vice president of the DFG, told The Scientist that particularly worrisome for researchers are sections of the new law dealing with liability and penalties to planters of GM crops. Under the new law, planters of GM crops that are found to contaminate adjacent non-GM fields can be held liable for damages even if they followed planting instructions and other regulations. Furthermore, the new rules removed reference to an acceptable threshold for GM pollen contamination. Hacker said this will allow non-GM farmers with even trace levels of GM pollen to seek monetary reimbursement if they can prove the contamination decreased the market value of their crops. Because of the new law, some German universities and other research organizations involved in GM research will not want to take the financial risk, said Hacker, who also is head of the Institute for Molecular Infection Biology at the University of Wuerzburg. "Science in the field of molecular biology… will become weaker in Germany," Hacker said. "Some of this experimental science will go to foreign countries." The new law also will create bureaucracy that will hinder GM research, Hacker said. For example, under the new rules, GM researchers who previously needed to deal with only one authority will now have to gain approval from two authorities, one for contamination/location issues, and one for release issues. The legislation also requires GM planters to seek regulatory approval at least 3 months in advance of planting, which Hacker believes in practice will result in waits of at least 6 months for approval. Such delays could be crippling for some scientists, who he said are working under intense competition and/or working with foreign colleagues. "If scientists cannot proceed [with the next round of experiments], then they are not working in an ideal situation," Hacker said. The new law requires planters of GM crops to provide a central public register with exact location of fields and other pertinent information. The information would be available over the Internet. Earlier this year, anti-GM activists destroyed GM wheat fields. A few weeks later, concerns about destruction prompted researchers in one project to plant nearly 30 GM cornfields in secret locations. Hacker appeared ambivalent about the central public register, at first saying that he can understand the need to make the exact location of fields public. But when pressed whether the DFG supported creation of the central public register, he said: "No. I cannot say so." Hacker added: "From my point of view, we have to convince the GMO activists not to destroy, not to commit illegal acts." Until that time comes, he conceded that researchers will have increase security for GM fields. Henning Strodthoff, gene technology expert at Greenpeace in Hamburg, told The Scientist that Greenpeace strongly supports the public register, adding that it simply brings Germany in compliance with EU Directive 2001/18, which requires registration of GM fields. Strodthoff described other aspects of the law as "progress," saying it will improve transparency, minimize potential GM contamination, and increase liability for planters of GM crops. "If GM crops are allowed, then we need strong regulations," Strodthoff said. When asked what Greenpeace would prefer in a GM planting law, he said: "Our goal is to stop GM planting. We want GM planting to be forbidden."

Law 'may stifle German science'

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