Bt maize by the biotechnology company Novartis. Citing the need to respect the 'precautionary principle', it is calling for more research into its potential hazards. Health minister and Green Party member Andrea Fischer instructed the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin, the health ministry's office that licenses field trials, to revoke a licence it had issued to Novartis three years ago. Fischer argued that issues related to the crop's safety have not been resolved.
More research needs to be done.
As a result of the government's move, the Office for Varieties has now put on hold its decision on licensing Novartis's Bt maize as a new variety. Such a licence is required for any new plant variety that is to be cultivated on a large scale. Environmental groups, including Greenpeace and the German group BUND, have welcomed the decision. Novartis says it has not decided whether to fight the decision. The German government's move is in line with the European Commission's de facto moratorium on licensing the commercial planting of GM plants.