<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Field Testing</b></p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">Tomato lines B, Da and F were field tested in the United States from 1991 to 1994. The agronomic characteristics of lines B, Da and F were evaluated extensively in laboratory, greenhouse, and field experiments. It was determined that tomato lines B, Da and F did not exhibit weedy characteristics, nor did they have any effect on nontarget organisms or the general environment.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Outcrossing</b></p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">Cultivated tomatoes are self-fertile, and almost exclusively self-pollinating. Their unique flower and anther morphology makes tomato an essentially cleistogamous plant (self-pollination and fertilization occur within an unopened flower). A low crossing rate between tomato varieties was demonstrated and attributed to the limited availability of pollen and poor foraging activity of insect pollinators.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">Several related species are found as weeds in tomato fields, however, tomato (<i>Lycopersicon esculentum</i> var. esculentum) is generally sexually incompatible with all these weedy relatives. Two Solanum species, <i>S. lycopersicoides</i> and <i>S. rickii</i>, can be crossed with commercial tomato under specific, controlled conditions, but they do not naturally cross with <i>L. esculentum</i> and require the intervention of man. Neither Solanum species is a weed pest in the United States.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">The cherry tomato, <i>L. esculentum</i> var. cerasiforme, can be crossed with tomato. However, it would be very unlikely for traits in tomato lines B, Da and F to naturally introgress into cherry tomatoes in the United States since the rate of outcrossing in tomatoes is low and cherry tomatoes are not common in areas devoted to large scale cultivation of tomatoes.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">It was concluded that the chance of genetic exchange among tomato crops was small and outside the species, remote. In the event that an outcrossing event involving pollen from transgenic tomato lines did occur, it was unlikely that the decrease in endogenous PG expression could affect seed persistence or weediness potential in progeny. Field testing determined that there were no changes to morphological or physiological characteristics which might affect pollination. It was determined that there was no likelihood that these modified tomato lines would gain a selective advantage to enable lines B, Da and F to become weeds or increase the weedy potential of another plant.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Weediness Potential</b></p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">Tomatoes are not considered a weed pest. There was no evidence to indicate that the introduced trait, reduction in PG activity during fruit ripening, in lines Da, F, and B would convert them into weeds. Tomato volunteers are not uncommon, but are easily controlled using herbicides or by mechanical means. Seed dispersal by birds or mammals is insignificant. Furthermore, due to its tropical origin, tomato is very sensitive to temperatures below 10C and winter cold will kill the majority of volunteer seedlings following harvest. Tomatoes are not persistent in undisturbed environments without human intervention. It was concluded that there was no likelihood that tomato lines Da, F, and B would have enhanced weediness traits compared to non-transformed tomatoes.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Secondary and Non-Target Adverse Effects</b></p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">The reduced levels of PG enzyme in genetically modified lines B, Da, and F should not have any toxic properties. Tomato flowers are unattractive to insect pollinators due to the limited availability of pollen. Bumblebee activity (<i>Bombus terrestris</i>) was found to be no different on modified and non-modified plants. Field testing determined that there were no significant differences in the susceptibility of modified and non-modified crops to pests and diseases. It was concluded that the genes inserted into transgenic tomato lines B, Da and F would not result in any deleterious effects or significant impacts on nontarget organisms, including those that are recognized as beneficial to agriculture and those that are recognized as threatened or endangered in the United States.</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Impact on Biodiversity</b></p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">The transgenic tomato lines B, Da and F have no novel phenotypic characteristics that would extend their use beyond the current geographic range of tomato production. Since the risk of gene transfer to wild relatives in the United States is very remote, it was determined that the risk of transferring genetic traits of tomato lines B, Da and F to species in unmanaged environments was insignificant.</p>
