Seed company at heart of Corngate before inquiry

3.20pm

A seed company at the centre of the Corngate affair says it was ready to destroy the allegedly genetically engineered (GE) corn, but there was no reliable evidence of contamination.

Syngenta managing director Peter Gerner denied suggestions from MPs that it had not handed over all information relating to the corn, but infuriated Green co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons by refusing to allow a company that tested for contamination to appear before inquiry.

The environment select committee is holding an inquiry sparked by author Nicky Hager's book Seeds of Distrust published during the election campaign in July last year.

Mr Hager alleged that Syngenta corn seed was allowed to continue growing in late 2000 after it was discovered to be contaminated by GE and the Government then subsequently tried to cover it up.

Mr Gerner and his scientific advisor told MPs by video link that the original test that sparked the contamination fears was flawed. Crop and Food, which had done the test, was inexperienced in the work which was in its infancy in 2000.

This view was backed by all scientists who had looked at the test and subsequent tests could find no reliable evidence of contamination, he said.

Government officials, Syngenta as well those involved in growing and processing the corn, were under pressure to decide if the corn was contaminated before it began to flower.

Syngenta -- a Swiss based company -- had sent 5.7 tonnes of seed to New Zealand to replant the fields so another crop could be grown, but Government officials had decided there was no reliable evidence of contamination.

National MP Nick Smith cast doubts on whether the company had conveniently ignored tests that pointed to some contamination.

An incomplete test by GeneScan -- commissioned by Syngenta -- had pointed to "trace elements" of low level contamination. Even though the exact level was inconclusive.

The tests were never finished because of a machine breakdown at GeneScan's laboratory

Syngenta's science adviser Willie de Greef said he was "puzzled" by the tests' preliminary finding as the sampling of 3000 seeds had pointed to one in 5000 being contaminated.

Dr de Greef said the result was difficult to accept scientifically when larger samples tested did not show similar results.

Dr Smith and Ms Fitzsimmons repeatedly asked for more details of the lab tests concerned and whether there were any other tests that the committee did not know about.

Mr Gerner was guarded in his replies, but tried to reassure the committee all possible information had been handed over.

Much of the inquiry hearing was taken up on what was meant by "zero tolerance", "reliably detected" and other phrases relating to claims of GE free crops and science's ability to detect contamination.

Dr de Greef said in Europe, which was the major market for the company's GE free seed, it was accepted that zero tolerance was "unobtainable in practice."

Absolute zero levels of a substance could not be ruled out to be present in seeds without completely destroying all of the seeds, this was "impracticable and unobtainable."

In Europe, GE free meant testing down to contamination levels of 0.1 per cent, he said.

- NZPA