Incident details
| Region/Continent and country: |
| North America / USA |
| Category of incident: |
Contamination
|
| What was contaminated: |
| Volunteer Weeds |
| GM organism involved: |
| Maize |
| Year incident occurred: |
| 2002 |
|
| Route of contamination |
| Cross-pollination |
|
|
 |
USA - experimental GM maize to produce a vaccine found growing in following crop
In Iowa in September, 2002, US Government inspectors discovered volunteer maize plants growing in a soybean field that was used as a ProdiGene test site for an experimental GM maize producing a vaccine in 2001. Volunteers are plants that grow from seed spilled at harvest from a previous crop. Because the GM maize volunteers may have pollinated neighbouring commercial maize fields, all maize seed and plant material within 1320 feet of the previous year’s test plot was destroyed.
Along with another violation, Prodigene had to pay a $250,000 fine and incurred other costs of £3.5 million.
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Further information
What is the compliance history with APHIS’ biotechnology regulations? Biotechnology Regulatory Services of the Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service, US Department of Agriculture. >
Pharmaceuticals from plants: The Prodigene Affair December 2, 2002
Food Safety Network >
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