ProdiGene nears deal on quarantined soybeans
Date: 18-Nov-02
Country: USA
Author: Christopher Doering
"We are in active discussions with USDA," said Anthony Laos, chief executive of privately held ProdiGene.
"We hope to get that settled today or Monday. We want to get this behind us," Laos told reporters.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Agriculture Department's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said the discussions were ongoing, but was uncertain when an agreement would be reached.
ProdiGene is suspected of contaminating corn fields in Iowa and soybeans in Nebraska with residue from an experimental corn variety engineered to produce pharmaceuticals. The bio-corn - which is grown to produce trypsin and another compound to treat diarrhea - has not been approved for human or livestock feed.
ProdiGene would like to channel the quarantined soybeans into bio-diesel to recover some of the costs of buying the 500,000 bushels - more than $2 million, based on the $5.60 per bushel price of soybeans on the Chicago futures market. Cindy Smith, the USDA's acting head of biotech regulations, said last week ProdiGene was expected to buy the soybeans and destroy them.
Laos said that if Texas-based ProdiGene would sell the soybeans for non-food use, ProdiGene would still lose "a couple hundred thousand dollars or more." ProdiGene also could face fines of up to $500,000 if it violated federal regulations for experimental field trials of new crops.
The USDA quarantined the soybeans in Nebraska after discovering the possible contamination during harvest last month. Investigators suspect the contamination occurred when a small amount of ProdiGene's corn plants mixed in with soybeans subsequently grown on the same field and adjacent fields.
In Iowa, the company was ordered to destroy 155 acres (63 hectares) of corn in September because windborne pollen from its bio-corn may have contaminated nearby fields.
Laos said ProdiGene will shift its plantings next year to areas farther from fields where food crops are grown. He did not specify the distance.
ProdiGene also will hire more of its own inspectors to ensure compliance with federal regulations, he said.
Laos said ProdiGene will continue its focus on developing bio-pharm products, and said that while any financial impact from the pending investigation may hurt the company, it will not have a long-term impact.
"How this will be handled will be a strain on ProdiGene," said Laos, who said he took full responsibility for the company's recent problems.
"But it will not put us out of business," he said.
