BERLIN - Germany's Agriculture Ministry will permit test cultivation of a potato containing genetically-modified organisms (GMOs), a source in the ministry told Reuters on Monday.
German Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner had this month said she would carry out a new review of an application for open-air trial cultivation of the GM potato Amflora, developed by German chemicals group BASF (BASF.DE).
Earlier this month Aigner banned cultivation and sale of the GM maize type MON 810 produced by U.S. seed giant Monanto (MON.N) despite its approval by the European Union.
There had been speculation that Aigner would stop the field trials of GM potatoes.
BASF warned last week that such a decision could damage Germany as a location for scientific research.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday many millions of euros had been invested in developing the Amflora potato in the hope that field trials could be made. [ID:nLO418555]
"This fact cannot simply be ignored because currently sentiment is hostile," Merkel had said on Friday, calling for a calmer debate on GM crops.
Germany's GM maize ban has been controversial inside its ruling government coalition as there are fears it could damage scientific development in the country.
Germany's Research Minister Annette Schavan has called a round table meeting into the future of GM crops.
"We must take the fear of new technology seriously but the debate cannot be left to fear only," Schavan said earlier this month.
Monsanto, the world's largest seed company, has also started legal action against the German ban, stressing the EU has approved it as safe for commercial cultivation and sale. [ID:nLM316942]
(Reporting by Thorsten Severin, writing by Dave Graham and Michael Hogan)
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