After approving the import of 16 genetically modified crops in June, the Ministry of Agriculture re-approved the import of two genetically modified crops in July. According to the trade agreement between China and the United States, the Chinese government agreed to speed up the process of approval of biotechnology products.
Released the news, genetically modified agricultural products had concerned once again . Recently, the Science and Technology Daily reporter on the relevant hot issues interviewed industry experts.
Import to ease the contradiction between domestic supply and demand.
At present, China’s largest imports of genetically modified grain and oil crops are soybeans. According to China Customs data, China’s transgenic soybean imports in the past 14 years soared from 16.9 million tons in 2003 to 83.91 million tons in 2016, an increase of more than four times, becoming a rigid demand.
This is mainly due to that there is a big gap between the domestic production and demand. “The import of genetically modified soybeans is mainly used for oiling and production of soybean meal, which ensures the safety of vegetable oil and animal feed,” said Li Xinhai, a researcher at the Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
China’s shortage of cultivated land resources, imports of soybeans is the domestic production of 6-7 times, if not imported soybeans, planting in the country needs 700 million mu of land, is clearly impossible. “Said He Wei, professor of the Department of Agricultural Economics at the School of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University, and even if all the non-genetically modified soybeans in the rest of the world are sold to China, they can not meet the soybean imports of 83.91 million tons in China.
Domestic non-invasive corn is weak.
China’s soybean production is insufficient to import, while the case of corn on the contrary, according to the latest data monitoring shows: as of mid-month, corn temporary storage stocks there are about 200 million tons.
Price is the most important factor, domestic and foreign corn prices upside down, imported corn has a parity advantage. “Li Xinhai said, at the same time, China’s corn and foreign GM corn compared to the quality of competitiveness is relatively weak.
Since the accession to the WTO, China’s corn prices showed an upward trend in September 2014 to 2714 yuan / ton, while the international market price of genetically modified maize, each difference of hundreds to a thousand dollars.
Li Xinhai further explained that the United States and other countries to use insect-resistant, anti-herbicide and other genetically modified corn to reduce the use of pesticides, the use of large-scale corn production technology, the production of high quality corn; and China’s corn due to varieties, production, storage and other factors , Low quality, can not meet some of the grain enterprises demand for high standards of corn.
It is safe to approve the listing of genetically modified foods.
China’s annual import such a large genetically modified agricultural products, the public worried that the quality of genetically modified products is safe and reliable?
Yang Xiaoguang, a researcher at the Center for Nutrition and Health of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that the consensus of academia is that the genetically modified foods that have been approved at home and abroad are safe. “So far, there has been no evidence that the scientific community has proven that genetically modified foods are harmful to humans,” he said.
Yang Xiaoguang from 20 years ago to do the safety of genetically modified products, he did not find domestic and foreign transgenic products and non-genetically modified products in the nutritional safety of the two significant differences. Data show that genetically modified food from the United States in 1996, has not yet found a case of genetically modified food caused by allergies or poisoning.
Promote the industrialization of independent research and development can change the status quo.
Industry experts believe that change the status of imports of genetically modified agricultural products is a simple and feasible program is to promote China’s independent research and development of genetically modified varieties of industrialization.
At present, the domestic can reach the level of industrialization of genetically modified products have rice, corn, soybeans and so on. The gene conversion efficiency of these products, rice up to 80%, 20% of corn, soybean 2% -3%. Among them, China’s rice gene conversion efficiency ranked in the forefront of the world. “Chinese Academy of Engineering, transgenic major project chief engineer Wan Jianmin said.
“In the case of maize, China has created a number of insect-resistant, herbicidal, drought-resistant and functional genetically modified maize with important application prospects.There are more productive trials of CC-2, a new herbicide-resistant transgenic maize , To reach the international advanced level of similar products. “Li Xinhai said.
