ENVIRONMENTAL campaigners claimed today genetically modified (GM) potatoes being trialled on a North Yorkshire farm could contaminate other plants near the site.

Friends Of The Earth (FOE) says there is a risk the crop, planted earlier this year in a field near Tadcaster, could pollute neighbouring vegetation.

Clare Oxborrow, of FOE, said: “Farmers, gardeners and people living nearby should know about it (the trials) because of the risk of contaminating other plants.”

An identical crop was destroyed last year when environmental campaigners ripped up plants on the site. FOE said it was not involved in that activity. In a bid to protect the land, fencing and CCTV cameras have been put up around the crop.

A Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) spokesperson declined to say precisely where the trials were taking place, citing the destruction of the crop last year.

DEFRA said the independent advisory committee on releases to the environment had confirmed the experiment would not compromise human health or the environment.

The 400 potato plants are resistant to nematode worms – a pest that costs farmers an estimated £65m a year. Scientists believe the trial could lead to a cut in chemical pesticide use.

DEFRA said the aim of the research, which is being conducted by the University of Leeds, was to test the performance of the potatoes and the effectiveness of the nematode resistance mechanism.

A DEFRA spokesperson said it published details and map references of all GM experiments on its website. The spokesperson said: “Leeds University was granted a three-year consent to conduct a research trial on GM potatoes in May 2008, after the application was considered by the independent Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment. The potatoes in the trial will not be used for food or animal feed and the consent contains conditions to ensure GM material does not persist at the site after the trial.”

Plants on land next to the potatoes will be destroyed after the experiment has finished. The field will then be left fallow – ploughed but unsown – to stop cross-pollination.