BASF
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Article describes the peculiar fawning attitude by British authorities for the GM giant, BASF.
"documents show that ministers have been far from even-handed. One set, obtained by the campaigning group GM Freeze, clearly demonstrate that the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) allowed the biotech giant BASF to help to set the conditions for field trials it has conducted on modified potatoes. On 1 December last year the company was given permission to plant 450,000 modified potatoes in British fields over the next five years, in a series of 10 trials. The set of emails and letters between Defra and the company reveal that officials repeatedly went to remarkable lengths to make sure the trial conditions, supposed to protect the environment and farmers, were "agreeable" to BASF."
"BASF said the potato field trial had received consent from the Government and was being carried out in strict accordance with the regulations laid down.... 'When approval for a field trial project is granted by the authorities in charge, this approval confirms that the tested crops are safe to be planted using the management procedures to be followed during the trial'" Protestors Shut Down Biotech Company Headquarters in Europe
