Europäische Technologieplattform Plants for the Future

1. Europäische Technologieplattform Plants for the Future Österreichischer Konsultationsprozess - Arbeitsgruppe 4: “Competitiveness, consumer choice and good governance” 10.11.05

2. Bereiche der Strategic Research Agenda • Goal 1: Vibrant Research • Deliverables:Genome sequences and biodiversity inventories • Plant systems biology • Improved genomics tools and processes • Genetic systems for crop improvement • Goal 2: Human resources, infrastructure and networking • Deliverables:Improved human resource training and skill management • Upgraded infrastructures for genomics and bioinformatics • Networks of research institutions, industry and other countries • Goal 3: Public/consumer involvement • Deliverables:Dissemination of the knowledge of plants • Improved mutual trust between the public and the plant science community • Plants are fun

3. Bereiche der Strategic Research Agenda • Goal 4: Ethics, Safety, legal and financial environment • Deliverables:Ethics: global justice, naturalness, freedom & consumer choice • Safety & legal issues: Coexistence, Improved legal environment • Financial issues: improved public funding, creative public-private partnerships, novel private investment

4. Zusammensetzung der Arbeitsgruppe 4

5. Stellungnahmen • Dr. Torgersen – Akademie der Wissenschaften/Dr. Wagner – Uni Linz • zu Goal 3 “Public and consumer involvement” • Ergänzungen zu den einzelnen Absätzen der Einleitung • -taking into account the “additional” tasks of agriculture • -overstating competitiveness and economic growth is counterproductive • -stakeholder involvement is problematic where negative attitudes are deeply entrenched • -Members of the plant science community must get more insight into patterns of public attitudes. It is necessary to educate scientists about the intricacies of public “holistic” thinking • Deliverable two: Mutual trust -As a prerequisite, it is necessary to bring to the notion of both lay people and scientists different forms of knowledge, frames and rationales. Industry PR often underestimates the publics’ feeling for the real usefulness of innovations and for exaggerated claims. • Deliverable three: Plants are fun • -The non-utilitarian view on scientific investigation as a cultural endeavour, especially in basic science, must be stressed.

6. Stellungnahmen • Dr. Torgersen – Akademie der Wissenschaften/Dr. Wagner – Uni Linz • Practical steps: awareness of ‘holistic’ thinking • -It is necessary to involve social scientists as well, since research results on public attitudes and everyday thinking help to sharpen the actors’ awareness. • Democratisation of plant science • -The proposed approach is a strategy of high risk. To submit several applications and review them is time consuming and compliance will be limited. Incorporating stakeholders is necessary but prone to render impossible any consensus. It could be denounced as window dressing while the ‘real’ decisions get sheltered from criticism. It is detrimental to the idea of democratisation, because one possible outcome – no biotech – will not be acceptable. • Re-humanisation of plant scientists • -Efforts to ‘culturally flesh out’ plant science, with an emphasis on the non-utilitarian aspects, are preferable. • A point not addressed • -In the present outcast, reference to socio-economic accompanying research is missing. Such exercises are necessary to provide a basis for discussion and opinions to be formed.

7. Stellungnahmen • Dr. Brandes - AGES • Zu Goal 3 “Public and consumer involvement und Goal 4 “Ethics, Safety, legal and financial environment” • Ergänzungen zur Einleitung • -discussion should not only be pro-plant but also pro-consumer • -consumer interests should be considered in decisions about gene technology and co-existence • Weitere Comments: • -concentration on the selection of more advantageous genes • -More emphasis on risk-assessement regarding human health/environment • Legal rules: • -better legal rules regarding coexistence, the knowledge has to be improved • -need for stringend threshold values in organic food products • -need of definition of specific rules for coexistence to protect organic farming – GMO free zones • Consumer choice: • -better GMO detection methods are needed

8. Stellungnahmen • Dr. Spoek – IFZ Graz • Zu Goal 4 “Ethics, legal and financial aspects” • -Key words: non-food crops, biopharmaceuticals, risk assessement, risk management, co-existence, legislation, molecular farming, biosafety • -“What is, however, missing from the SRA is to tackle the risk, socio-economic and regulatory issues that might be associated with these novel production systems: scientific research in possible health or environmental risks of open field production of industrial or pharmaceutical substances, socio-economic constraints of an increased diversification of EU agriculture, suitability of the present EU legislative framework and of the EU risk assessment concepts and approaches for handling this type of plants. “ • A breeding companies’ input • Zu Goal 4 “Ethics, legal and financial aspects” • -“The coexistence element and free choice add diversity and value to the “plant industry”. However rules and regulations must be fair and practical. Ideas like “zero gmo tolerances” are not helpful and must be avoided.”

9. Stellungnahmen • Diskussionsprozess FFG • Zu Goal 4 “Public funding” • -internal strategic discussion • -Letter of comittment?

10. Danke für Ihre Aufmerksamkeit! Das KoordinatorInnen-Team Therese Lindahl, Martin Krachler, Birgit Steininger und die gesamte AG4