BEIJING, China (Reuters) — China aims to crack down further on the cultivation of illegal genetically modified crops, a senior agricultural official said following instances of the planting of unapproved strains of corn and soybeans.
The agriculture ministry began a nationwide investigation last year amid media reports that farmers in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang were planting unapproved GM soybean varieties.
As much as 93 percent of samples from cornfields in Liaoning, another northeastern province, tested positive for GM varieties, a survey by environmental group Greenpeace shows.
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“We need to strengthen day-to-day regulation and strictly supervise the implementation of the law,” said Han Jun, the deputy director of the office of the Chinese Communist Party’s rural policy unit.
“From the source, we must prevent genetically modified seeds that have not been approved from illegally entering the market,” Han said.
People who are worried about the risks of GM products must have the right to choose whether to use them, he added.
China permits imports of GM soybeans, but only for use in animal feed. Han said China’s policy on GMOs remained consistent, and the country is still committed to the research, development and commercialization of the technology.
China will continue to “prudently promote GMO technology on the basis of guaranteeing safety,” authorities said in a document published Jan. 27 that sets out the country’s rural policy priorities for the year.
