State Gives Final OK to Genetic Test but Foes Protest
The state gave final approval for the nation’s first outdoor test of genetically altered bacteria, but opponents immediately threatened court action to block the strawberry field experiment.
The man-made spray, commercially known as Frostban, was designed to prevent frost damage to crops and could save farmers billions of dollars, according to the manufacturer, Advanced Genetic Sciences Inc. Opponents argue that not enough is known about the effects of the spray to warrant its use in the open air.
The company announced Monday that the California Department of Food and Agriculture has issued a permit for testing Frostban on one-fifth of an acre of strawberry plants near Brentwood in Contra Costa County, 30 miles east of San Francisco.
The testing permit “is the final regulatory approval required,” said company president Joseph Bouchkaert, who added, “The field trial will begin shortly.”
Opponents said they plan today to deliver to the company a protest petition signed by 1,500 residents of the Brentwood area and plan to file a lawsuit Wednesday in Sacramento.
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