By Robert Derham, Checkbiotech

Germany’s Minister for Consumer Rights and Agriculture, Renate Kuenast, is facing allegations that she used her political position to put a stop to at least two research projects that were studying genetically modified (GM) crops The Scientist is reporting.

Kuenast is well known in Germany for taking an “all or nothing” approach at stopping the progression of genetically modified organisms of any kind in Germany. She belongs to Germany’s Green Party, who openly works with environmental groups and large organic farming associations to keep Germany’s doors shut to genetically enhanced products.

The recent allegations cast yet another shadow over the coalition government of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. Schroeder has openly praised the potential of biotechnology and called for more progress in the area of genetic engineering.

Yet, Kuenast’s Green Party is a part of the coalition government, headed by Schroeder’s Social Democratic Party, and echoes anything but the contrary to Schroeder’s requests.

Allegations regarding the recent scandal first arose back in February, when a German monthly newsletter called Laborjournal reported that Kuenast’s office had sent letters to at least two researchers, requesting them to stop their research projects and to not make and public comments regarding them either.

The researchers caught in the political web are Joachim Schiemann, from the Federal Research Institute for Agriculture and Forestry, and Reinhard Toepfer at the Federal Research Institute for Breeding of Cultivated Plants (BAFZ).

Their research involved new methods that would lay to rest one of the reservations that opponents—the use of antibiotic resistance markers. Dr. Schiemann and Toepfer were working on methods that would eliminate these markers after a new gene had been added.

Antibiotic markers are a part of group of tools called selective markers that help scientist identify if a gene of interest was correctly inserted into the target organism. These markers provide the target organism with a built-in resistance to agents that would normally lead to their death, thus allowing the researchers to tell if a new gene had been correctly inserted.

Many opponents have raised the concern that these selective markers could be transferred to other organism. Thus, the research of Dr. Schiemann and Toepfer was aimed at removing these concerns, making genetically modified crops all the more safer.

The problem that scientist such as Drs. Schiemann and Toepfer have, is that they are part of a German research program funded directly from the government. Although, in the institute’s 13 year history, a similar case has never arisen, scientists in similar institutes are not required to compete for grants and publications. Their funding and studies are dictated primarily by government boards.

In comments provided to The Scientist, Jörg Hinrich Hacker, vice president of the German Research Society, Künast's actions reflected the Green Party's political position on genetically modified crops. "They do not want this technology as a whole," Hacker said. "Any research eliminating the risk would destroy their argument."

"Renate Künast prevents department institutes from entering into scientific competition," said Hacker to The Scientist. "The policies of the Green Party on green biotechnology are a handicap for science. They are hostile to innovation and research."

Kuenast will now face a governmental inquisition that will look into the accusations. Kuenast and the organisations that funded her political career have always questioned the safety of transgenic crops, and have repeatedly requested that more research be carried out to assess the safety of such crops.

Ironically, Kuenast will now have to answer why she would extinguish research that would help ensure the safety of GM crops.

Link to the original article in The Scientist: http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20050308/01

Further Information and Links:

Renate Kϋnast
http://www.renate-kuenast.de/ 

K. Hollricher, "Künasts forschungsverbot," Laborjournal, February 21, 2005.
http://www.laborjournal.de/editorials/103.html 

Joachim Schiemann
http://www.efsa.eu.int/science/gmo/gmo_members/314/cv_gmo_sch1. pdf 

Jörg Hinrich Hacker

Inge Broer
http://www.auf.uni-rostock.de/mitarbeiter_einzel.asp?ID=270