HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters) – German chemicals group BASF has said it made a mistake in cultivating a type of potato with genetically modified organisms in Sweden that do not have European Union approval.
On Sept. 6 , European Union authorities asked BASF to explain how unapproved GM potatoes of a new variety called Amadea, undergoing research cultivation, were found growing in Sweden in a field of Amflora potatoes, a GM variety that was approved for commercial production in the EU in March.
“The mix-up occurred because Amadea and Amflora plants were in close proximity to each other at our facilities,” Peter Eckes, president of BASF Plant Science, said in a statement.
“We regret this very much. To prevent such mistakes in the future, we will ensure complete separation of the production systems for Amadea and Amflora.”
BASF said it will discard the harvests from all the affected potato fields in northern Sweden, which involves about 40 acres.
A BASF spokesperson blamed human error.
