Potato with improved resistance to Phytophthora infestans

The trials will be confined by a 10 meter isolation distance. Outcrossing to neighbouring fields is therefore highly unlikely.

The risk on any adverse effect is considered to be negligible.

An isolation distance of 20 m to other potato varieties will be observed. Planting and harvesting equipment will be cleaned on site to prevent the dispersal of GM tubers. There will be no potato cultivation on the release area for the year following the release. Potential volunteers will be monitored and removed according to conventional agricultural practice. During the release the trial site will be monitored at defined intervals.

See also the risk assessment summary above.

The field trials will be conducted in the northeast and east parts of the Netherlands. Under these conditions potato is biologically contained.
Commercial cultivation of (starch) potatoes occurs also in these regions.

No specific validated detection methods are available (yet).

The genetically modified potato lines contain two NBS-LRR-genes, Rpi-blb1 and Rpi-blb2, from S. bulbocastanum for conferring improved resistance to P. infestans. Many conventional potato varieties also contain additional NBS-LRR-genes that have been introgressed from wild Solanum species. An intended effect of the introduced trait is an increased survivability in potato fields exposed to P. infestans. This possible selective advantage, however, is of importance only in the agricultural field, and will not improve the survivability in the surrounding environment. The reduced need for fungicides on these lines can easily be identified as an environmental benefit.
The ahas gene expressed in the potato plants imparts tolerance to the herbicidal active substance Imazamox to the shoots during the selection process in cell culture. This confers no selective advantage in the field since Imidazolinone herbicides are not approved for use on crops in NL and since no field tolerance is expected in the potato plants. No difference with respect to persistence in agriculturally utilised habitats or invasiveness into natural habitats as compared to conventional potato varieties is expected. Through the measures which are taken during the release, distance from or absence of conventionally cultivated potatoes or wild species, the possibility of any gene transfer can be virtually ruled out. Even in the very improbable event that pollen were to be transferred to genetically unmodified potato plants, no consequences are to be expected, since potato propagation conventionally takes place via tubers and not via seeds. The interactions of the genetically modified potato line with non-target organisms and the effects resulting from this will be comparable to those with conventional potato varieties. Furthermore, no toxic or allergenic effects are expected on the basis of the improved resistance to P. infestans or the expressed AHAS protein. No effects on biogeochemical processes are expected, other than those that apply also to conventional potatoes.

- Evaluate resistance to P. infestans
- Investigate the general agricultural value of the modified lines
- Produce seed potatoes for future trials

An English version of the notification including the risk assessment is available at the EU WebSNIF website EC-JRC GMO Register under notification number B/NL/05/03.

The consent is available at http://www.ggo-vergunningverlening-zoeken.nl(notification number IM 05-003) (only in Dutch).