The world's leading supplier of seeds, Pioneer Hi-Bred, has said claims that up to 15% of Europe's maize crop contains genetically modified material may well be true.

A company spokesman told the BBC he was not surprised by the claim, which was made on Wednesday by the environmental group, Greenpeace.

The spokesman, Simlon Preece, said the GM material could have crossed into supposedly pure supplies via wind pollination or contamination from seed-crushing machines, which process both types of seed.

The admission comes just days after a row broke out across Europe when another company, Advanta, admitted it had mistakenly sold seeds containing traces of GM material to farmers in Britain, France, Germany and Sweden.

Full Story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_764000/764742.stm