GM corn application under review

BEIJING - China is reviewing a new application to import genetically modified (GM) corn after previous ones were rejected for the reason of insufficient application material, according to the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) on Friday.

In March 2010, Swiss company Syngenta AG submitted an application to import GM corn MIR162 and carried out environmental safety and food safety tests in China, before it went on to apply for a safety certificate for the GM corn as a raw material for processing, said MOA spokesman Bi Meijia.

Although the company applied multiple times, it failed to provide sufficient application material and experimental data. Under the principle of prudence, the MOA asked the company to submit more material, Bi said.

Syngenta AG re-applied in November this year and the new application is under review, the spokesman said.

Chinese authorities have been cautious with GM crops. Public concerns over GM range from food safety to environmental impact, ethics to politics.

China's quality watchdog said last Friday that 60,000 tons of corn from the United States containing the unapproved MIR162 had recently been rejected.