Risk assessment for volunteer and seedling GM potatoes in the northernmost European growing areas

Abstract

Commercial production of genetically modified (GM) potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) could represent a risk to conventional production if volunteer plants develop from tubers or true seeds that survive until the following growing season. We studied such risks under northernmost European conditions and monitored the effects of cultivar, tuber size and tuber depth in the soil on winter survival at MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Jokioinen (61806?N, 23802?E) from 2004Á 2007. Tubers of two non-GM cultivars, Saturna and Asterix, and two size classes, 25Á30 mm and 45Á50 mm, were planted at depths of 10 and 20 cm in autumn, soon after harvest. In winters 2004Á2005 and 2005Á2006 all tubers planted in the soil in autumn were killed by frost. In 2005Á2006, the field was covered by up to 30Á40 cm of snow and the minimum soil temperatures ranged between (0.4 o C and (0.9 o C, but only 0.0Á3.5% of the tubers survived and there was no difference between cultivars, tuber sizes and planting depths. Under laboratory conditions compared with (2.08C and (2.58C, treatment at (3.08C for 72 h resulted in significantly lower survival rate of the tubers (8.2%). Asterix, a late maturing table potato cultivar, was more resistant to low temperatures than the processing cultivar Saturna. In general, volunteer tubers are not currently a significant risk for coexistence of GM and conventional potato production in northern Europe due to the cold winter conditions but also due to possibilities to control the sporadic volunteers from the next crop. However, we noted that seedlings initiated from true potato seed are able to produce tubers despite the short growing season. Such a risk could be reduced by accepting only non-berry-producing GM cultivars for cultivation.

Seed loss and volunteer seedling establishment of rapeseed in the northernmost European conditions: potential for weed infestation and GM risks

“…The experiment lasted until autumn 2007. For winter and spring months, daily measurements on soil temperatures at 0, 10 and 20 cm soil depth were available from nearby experiments and are reported by Mustonen et al (2009). Seeds were germinated for the first time on 11 November 2004 and thereafter twice a year (in spring and autumn) on 13 May and 10 October 2005, 12 May and 12 October 2006 and 2 May and 19 September 2007.…”