Prospects for growing blight-resistant potatoes created by genetic modification have received a setback in the UK after BASF's decision to suspend research into such varieties.

BASF's blight-resistant potato Fortuna was five to six years away from commercial adoption, with its dossier still to be submitted to the EU.

Trials showed Fortuna was agronomically identical to the widely grown conventional variety Agria, but had total resistance to late blight, said Mr Wetjen.

BASF is blaming continuing delays in getting EU approval for GM potatoes, saying approval of its GM starch variety remains "lost in the politics"of the EU.

"In the past decade, we have invested over €1bn into GM research,"said BASF's Tom Wetjen at the Potato Council's East Midlands Potato Day.

"The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has several times concluded that the Amflora starch potato is safe, and yet the variety is still not approved. Now it's a political decision."

That left the company unable to recoup any of its investment in Amflora, which produced a special starch for energy-efficient manufacture of paper, textiles and adhesives.