Scientist calls decaf coffee row tempest in teacup

By Reese Ewing

SAO PAULO, Brazil, July 13 (Reuters) - The Brazilian scientist who recently discovered naturally decaffeinated coffee plants from a collection of wild Ethiopian beans said on Tuesday reports that he had taken coffee plants illegally from the African country were "nonsense."

The spat has underscored the potential money at stake over the rights to genetic material of the coffee plants, even though the commercial potential of the wild plants is unknown and a product could take at least five years to get to market.

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