The THF-epoxide 8 has been prepared from benzyl (R)-(-)-glycidyl ether using a 10-step synthetic scheme in a stereocontrolled fashion. Compound 8 is a highly useful synthon for the synthesis of mono-and di-THF acetogenins. This new synthetic approach can also be applied to the generation of large chemical libraries of acetogenins. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.