London (15.4.09 and later) – On more than one occasion in recent years we have had occasion to comment on the sorry state of agricultural biotechnology in Germany, a technology under assault from all manner of pressure groups and – most unfortunately of all – from its own government (1-3).

The Germany of Helmholtz and Leibniz, of Fischer and Bunsen, and of Einstein and Heisenberg, is turning itself into a scientific and technological basket case. Max Planck, who has an institute of plant breeding in Cologne named in his honour, must be spinning in his grave. True, Germany makes some good cars although right now they are having trouble exporting them while at home bribes are needed via a “scrappage” subsidy for their old cars to persuade prospective customers to buy new ones.

But elsewhere in science and technology we are offered a picture of a population quaking in their collective boots, recoiling from novelty, scared of their own shadows.

Yesterday, the Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner announced a ban on the cultivation in Germany of genetically modified maize MON 810, a strain grown in umpteen countries around the world, approved for cultivation in the European Union ten years ago (the only GM strain indeed, to have been so approved) and grown without trouble in several European countries in the past decade. Frau Aigner said “My decision is not a political decision, it’s a decision based on the facts” (4). Well, maybe that’s what she said but what exactly are the “facts” that are of such concern? We are left wondering.

The decision, which still needs to be approved by Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet, is a turnaround from legislation passed in January last year making it easier for farmers to grow GM-maize. Horst Seehofer, who was then agriculture minister, said at the time that his decision was meant to help Germany’s biotechnology industry. Yet the legislation passed then was criticised by green lobbies as well as Monsanto, which said it failed to remove hurdles for farmers wanting to plant the crop (4).

Weak governments see attacking GM as a cheap way of gaining political support. It appears to have happened in France (5) and now here it is again in Germany. Will the Federal Chancellor be strong enough to deny her Agriculture Minister her political games? Or is this German government simply too frail, its coalition too shaky, to permit rationality to take precedence over political manoeuvring and advantage? The omens are not good.

Meanwhile, the pressure groups crow (6), oblivious to the dreadful effects in Germany itself and on Germany’s reputation in the world; they, too, care for nothing but their political positions.

The German press is divided (7, 8) but at least German scientists and agriculturalists are furious, as well they might be. Yesterday and today, as witnessed by statement after statement, scientists and other thinking people are disgusted with the antics of their government (9-13)

It is, of course, not uninteresting that the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements and organic farmers from Austria, Greece, France and Hungary urged Frau Aigner to respect their right to maintain their own national bans on genetically modified maize (14).The organic hierarchy never misses an opportunity to promote their own wares by running down other peoples'.

Unless the Chancellor decides to put her foot down, Germany appears now to have decided to join those other countries in Europe looking firmly backwards and hoping to maintain their cosseted agriculture with its high subsidies while the rest of the world waves them goodbye. We must hope that EU Member States expressing a reasoned attitude to modern agriculture (the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, Spain, Portugal, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the UK and others) will not allow themselves be influenced by the misguided decisions of those stuck in the mud and scared of progress. Germany and her agricultural friends might wish to go against the spirit of the single market and unilaterally ban the production of a crop approved years ago by Europe as a whole. The more progressive countries should give them free reign to dig their own holes and tolerate no longer the endless delaying tactics of those very same countries in the councils of the EU when more GM crops come up for approval. Let the countries wishing to go forward make local decisions for themselves based on their own claims to be governed, as they say, by “sound science”. Science would indeed be on their side.

Sources:

1. Field trial abandoned in Germany (19.4.07) . CropGen (http://www.cropgen.org/article_118.html)

2. A black day for biotechnology in Germany (24.8.07). CropGen (http://www.cropgen.org/article_145.html)

3. Henry I Miller (September 2008). Auf Wiedersehen, agbiotech. Nature Biotechnology, 26(9), 974-5

4. Brett Neely (14.1.09). Germany to ban Monsanto MON810 corn, joining Austria. Bloomberg (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601100&sid=aCzftfHH1c3I&refer=germany)

5. To be continued (probably) (1.3.09). CropGen (http://www.cropgen.org/article_221.html)

6. Germany bans Monsanto's maize. Greenpeace International (15.4.09 (http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/germany-bans-monsanto-s-maize)

7 . German press review: GM corn ban, environmental victory or vote winner? Deutsche Welle (15.4.09) (http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4179022,00.html)

8. Hidde Boersma (17.4.09). Stop Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth. NRC Handlesband (http://www.nrc.nl/international/Opinion/article2215416.ece/Stop_Greenpeace_and_Friends_of_the_Earth)

9 . Anbauverbot für MON 810 ist Willkürakt; Ministerin riskiert Schadensersatzklagen in Millionenhöhe. Seed Quest (14.4.09) (http://www.seedquest.com/News/releases/2009/april/25799.htm)

10 . Anbauverbot für gentechnisch veränderten Mais / DIB fürchtet Rückschlag für Biotech-Standort Deutschland. Finanz Nachrichten (14.4.09) (http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2009-04/13620897-anbauverbot-fuer-gentechnisch-veraenderten-mais-dib-fuerchtet-rueckschlag-fuer-biotech-standort-deutschland-007.htm)

11. Arbeitsgemeinschaft Innovativer Landwirte (AGIL): "Für das Verbot von MON810-Mais gibt es keinen vernünftigen Grund." InnoPlanta (14.4.09) (http://www.innoplanta.de/de/aktuell/verbot_von_mon810.html)

12. Jens Katzek (14.4.09) “Wahlkampf pur auf Kosten einer Zukunftsindustrie“. BIO Mitteldeutschland

13. Christel Happach-Kasan(14.4.09): Gen-Mais-Verbot - Fachlichkeit wird dem Populismus geopfert. Pressrelations (http://www.pressrelations.de/new/standard/result_main.cfm?r=363772&aktion=jour_pm&quelle=1)

14. IFOAM EU asked for German support in maintaining national bans on GM maize. Organic Market Info (28.2.09) (http://www.ifoam.org/about_ifoam/around_world/eu_group-new/media/pdf/PR_IFOAMEUGroup_GMObans_19.02.2009.pdf)

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