03 mars 2004 09:36
GM crops OK'ed in China
Isabelle Hontebeyrie
Safety certificates
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| Photo: Ian Britton |
have been granted by the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture to foreign compagnies importing genetically modified crops in China.
The first company to be OK'ed is Monsanto, the American biotech firm.
Dr. Li Yongchun of State Key Laboratory for Agro-biotechnology of Chinese Agriculture University, as reported by the Chinese news agency Xinhuanet, explains :
- "Depending on where and for what purpose the plant is grown, desirable genes may provide features such as higher yield or improved quality, pest or disease resistance, or tolerance to heat, cold and drought."
- "One is food safety. For example, we might see an increase in the number of allergic reactions to food as a result of genetic engineering. But until now there is no evidence that transgenic foods pose more of a risk than conventional foods."
- Li Yongchun says there are other concerns about health and environmental safety. However, either there is no evidence of a problem or scientists have found ways to prevent such problems from arising.
Chinese consumers will be able to choose whether or not they wish to buy genetically modified products, as they are labeled accordingly.
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