Appeal No. 2004-0329 Page 7
Application No. 09/251,953
An estimated 35 percent of this year’s U.S. corn crop and 55
percent of soybeans—almost 5 billion bushels in total—will derive
from genetically modified seeds.
But consumer groups in Asia and the European Union, both
major export markets, have generated a tide of protest against the
use of modified crops in foods and livestock feed.
ADM said in a statement this week that some customers are
basing their purchases on the genetic origin of the crops.
“We encourage you as our supplier to segregate non-
genetically enhanced crops to preserve their identity,” the
statement said.
ADM is a major buyer of crops, with more than 500 grain
elevators and 355 crop processing plants worldwide.
Thus, the ADM article clearly recognizes the nature of the problem to be
solved—the separation and the preservation of the identity of non-genetically
modified crops. As noted by the rejection, however, the ADM article fails to
explicitly set forth the steps that such separation should entail.
Poehlman, a textbook, discusses the certification of seeds, noting that
“[c]ertified seed must be handled so as to maintain sufficient genetic identity and
purity of the variety that it will be approved and certified by the certifying agency.”
Id. at 450, column 1. The reference notes that certification procedures vary from
state to state, but states that such procedures generally involve the following
steps:
a) planting approved seed;
b) planting the seed on clean ground;
c) isolating the crop in varieties that undergo cross-pollination;
d) removing off-type plants;
e) inspecting the field to check, among other things, the purity of the
variety;
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