By Mark Hucko, Checkbiotech

Since German companies and seed producers continue to reject demands of German regulators to pay mandatory contributions to a state-regulated compensation fund, observers don’t expect any large-scale planting of genetically modified (GM) crops in Germany before 2007.

Until now, German farmers have avoided large-scale plantings of commercial GM crops such as corn or rapeseed, because German regulators want to require mandatory contributions to a compensation fund that would be entitled to farmers whose crops crossed with genetically engineered crops.

Due to laws passed by the previous German Red-Green Coalition, farmers growing biotech crops would be liable if neighbouring non-GM fields were to become contaminated by GM crops - regardless of who caused the contamination.

The theory behind the law was the presumption that crops contaminated by transgenic crops would have a lower market value and thus the affected growers of non-GM crops would suffer a financial loss - an argument that the biotech industry and some farmers reject.

Germany’s new “Grand-Coalition” government, led by Chancellor Angela Merkel, had assured to protect farmers from excessive contributions to a compensation fund. However until now, Merkel’s government was unable to agree with industry and farmer organizations on ways to finance this compensation fund.

During her campaign trail, Merkel had promised to provide German farmers with the option of using enhanced crops. However, observers do not expect a solution to the problem before the summer of 2006, and thus the first large-scale GM crop plantings are not expected to take place before the spring of 2007.

Furthermore, it is possible, that a possible agreement between the government and farmers will be blocked by biotech seed producers, who reject any type of government-regulated liability fund.

Dr. Ricardo Gent, CEO of the German Association of German Biotechnology Companies (DIB) told the press, “We will reject any liability fund that is regulated by law.”

Seed producers would prefer to make their own private insurance arrangements without the mandatory contributions to a state-regulated fund as requested by the government.

Related articles:

• Germany 'accepting' GM agriculture - Chairman (12 Jan 2006)
• Germany begins sowing GM seeds (22 Dec 2005)
• First ever GM plants approved in Germany (15 Dec 2005)
• Green biotech is still a tender plant in Germany (06 Oct 2005)