| Amflora | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Event | EH92-527-1 |
| Identifier(s) | BPS-25271-9 |
| Plant | Solanum tuberosum L. |
| Mode | Transgenesis |
| Method | Insertion |
| Vector | pHoxwG[1] |
| Developer | Svalöf Weibull AB[1] |
| Trait(s) conferred | Decreasedamylose production, increasedkanamycin resistance |
| Genes introduced | Granule bound starch synthase,neomycin phosphotransferase II |
Amflora (also known asEH92-527-1) is agenetically modified potatocultivar developed byBASF Plant Science. "Amflora"potato plants produce pureamylopectin starch that is processed towaxy potato starch. It was approved for industrial applications in theEuropean Union on 2 March 2010 by theEuropean Commission.[2] In January 2012, the potato was withdrawn from the market in theEU.
Originally registered on 5 August 1996, Amflora was developed bygeneticist Lennart Erjefält andagronomist Jüri Känno ofSvalöf Weibull AB.[1]
After the European Commission's approval of the potato, BASF announced it was going to produce Amflora seed starting in April 2010 in Germany'sWestern Pomerania (20 ha) andSweden (80 ha). It also announced it was planting 150 ha in theCzech Republic "for commercial aims with an unnamed partner."[3]
Due to lack of acceptance ofGM crops in Europe, BASF Plant Science decided in January 2012 to stop its commercialization activities in Europe and would no longer sell Amflora there, but it would continue seeking regulatory approval for its products in the Americas and Asia.[4]
In 2013, an EU court annulled the approval of BASF's Amflora, saying that the EU Commission broke rules when it approved the potato in 2010.[5]
Waxy potato varieties produce two main kinds of potato starch,amylose andamylopectin, the latter of which is most industrially useful. The Amflora potato has been modified to containantisenseRNA against the enzyme that drives synthesis of amylose, namelygranule bound starch synthase.[6] This resulting potato almost exclusively producesamylopectin, and thus is more useful for the starch industry.
Regular potato starch contains two constituent types of molecules: amylopectin (80 percent), which is more useful as apolymer for industry, andamylose (20 percent) which often creates problems asstarch retrogradation, so must bemodified with chemical reactions which can be costly.[7]
After two decades of research efforts,[8] BASF'sbiotechnologists usinggenetic engineering succeeded in creating a potato, named "Amflora", where the gene responsible for the synthesis of amylose had been turned off, thus the potato is unable to synthesize the less desirable amylose.
Amflora potatoes would be processed and sold asstarch to industries that prefer waxy potato starch with only amylopectin. Amflora is intended only for industrial applications such aspapermaking and other technical applications.[9] Europe produces more than two million metric tons of natural potato starch a year, and BASF with its Amflora product hoped to enter into this large market.[7]
According toThe New York Times, BASF has a second application pending for use of Amflora'spotato pulp asanimal feed.[8]
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Variousenvironmental organizations, such asGreenpeace, disagreed with the introduction of the Amflora genetically modified potato into the market. The lengthy approval process frustrated some supporters of the potato. A BASF scientist said toThe New York Times, "it's hard when you see an innovative product go through the loops again and again. These decisions are not about science but about politics".[8] After the potato was approved, theEuropean Greens political party and the then Italian agricultural ministerLuca Zaia criticized the approval.[10] TheInternational Peasant Movement La Via Campesina issued a press release on 8 March 2010 also criticizing the decision.[11]
After Amflora's licensing by the European Commission on 2 March 2010, theCoalition of the Radical Left'sMember of Parliament for theA Thessalonikis prefecture,Tasos Kouvelis, asked the Greek Minister of Agriculture on 3 March 2010 to declare the production of the potato illegal inGreece.[12] On 4 March 2010Panhellenic Socialist Movement'sEuropean Member of ParliamentKriton Arsenis submitted a question atEuroparl asking about the consequences of Amflora.[13]
PASOK's MPMaria Damanaki accepted the decision of the European Commission, while Greek Agriculture MinisterKaterina Batzeli said the production of Amflora will not be allowed in Greece.[14]
Amflora could not be sold within the European Union without approval, and its licence could only be issued after voting at theCouncil of Ministers of the European Union with a 74 percent threshold of support. Two rounds of voting were held, first by experts in December 2006 and then by the agricultural ministers in July 2007, but both failed to reach the 74 percent threshold. Although the voting was bysecret ballot,The New York Times reported that Amflora was supported by the agricultural ministers ofGermany andBelgium, and was opposed by the agricultural ministers ofItaly,Ireland, andAustria, while the agricultural ministers ofFrance andBulgaria abstained from voting.[8]
After a licence was issued on 2 March 2010, BASF announced its intention to ask for approval of more varieties of genetically modified potatoes, such as the "Fortuna" potato.[3]
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