Italian court rejects company bid to save GM maize

http://reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=governmentFiling
sNews&storyID=3106529 Thu July 17, 2003 06:12 AM ET 

TURIN, July 17 (Reuters) - A court on Thursday rejected an attempt 
by the Italian unit of Pioneer Hi-Bred, a subsidiary of Dupont Co
DD.N, to halt an order to destroy maize thought to contain genetic
material, a local government source said.

"The order to destroy the maize remains in force following the
decision by the regional court in Turin in response to Pioneer's
request for an immediate suspension of the order," the source, who
asked not to be identified, told Reuters.

The reasons for the court decision were not immediately known.

Piedmont region in northwest Italy on Friday ordered the destruction
within five days of 381 hectares of maize fields thought to be
contaminated with gene-modified material. Most of the maize has 
since been destroyed, environmentalists said.

The fields were sowed with Pioneer's seeds, but a company spokesman
has said internal tests before marketing showed no presence of
genetically modified organisms (GMOs), adding that the company markets
only conventional seeds in Italy.

Pioneer contested the Piedmont order on the grounds it had no
scientific basis.

Commercial sowing of GMO seeds is banned in Italy under a so-called
"zero tolerance" policy. ---