The department would be charged with putting appropriate safeguards into place. Bastian said that the move did not constitute a ban on the sale of genetically modified food produced elsewhere. As an island we have to produce what our customers want. In any case, any possible successful conclusion to the potato research would have been 10 years away, he said. Jersey's agriculture derives much of its income from the export of early potatoes to the UK, thanks to the opportunity presented by its mild climate and position south of Britain, off the northwest coast of France.
Tomatoes are also an important crop, followed by other vegetables and cut flowers.
A spokesman for the British Potato Council explained that Britain bought Jersey Royal Potatoes during April to June, before the bulk of the British early crop comes in. In 1999 Britain imported 43,300 tons of Jersey potatoes, compared with a total British consumption annual figure of just over five million tons, which includes early and main crop potatoes. The island of Jersey is a dependency of the British crown, with its own legislative assembly.