Greenpeace on Wednesday demanded that Nestlé abandon a European patent on a genetically modified arabica coffee plant, along with other patents the company holds on GM food products. The call came a day before the Swiss food giant's annual general meeting.
The European Patent Office granted Nestlé the arabica patent in February, covering a genetic modification intended to increase the coffee's solubility, among other changes. The original application was filed in August 2002 and had been listed in the patent office's online database since July 2004.
Greenpeace argued the patents contradicted Nestlé's public position in many markets, where the company has said it avoids GM ingredients. The group warned that modified traits could spread to conventional and organic farms, potentially making those crops unsaleable and forcing smaller growers to rely on patented seedlings that would likely cost more than traditional varieties.
Nestlé spokesperson François-Xavier Perroud rejected the criticisms as "incomplete and outdated." He said the company uses GM crops only where local regulators have approved them and does not sell such products in markets such as Europe, where consumer resistance is high. No Nestlé coffee product anywhere contains GMOs, he added, and the patents serve as a defensive measure to prevent competitors from controlling the technology.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in April 2006, in its own words.