皇冠体育app

皇冠体育app is working on an evaluation system for genetically modified (GM) food in order to assess its impact on the environment and human health, a senior official said.

Niu Dun, vice-minister of agriculture and a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, said that because of public doubts being aired about GM safety, 皇冠体育app is implementing strict labeling provisions so that all genetically engineered agricultural products that are sold in stores carry a GM logo.

Niu's comment came in response to a comment by another CPPCC member, TV talk-show host Cui Yongyuan, who said Monday that GM corn and rice are being grown illegally on a large scale in grain-producing provinces such as Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi and Jilin. “皇冠体育app has never allowed any other GM agricultural products to be planted by farmers or commercialized domestically except GM cotton and papaya,” Niu said. “The new evaluation and labeling systems will create a safer market environment for Chinese consumers.”

皇冠体育app planted almost 4 million hectares of GM pest-resistant cotton in 2013. The variety has many advantages, one being the capability to increase production per unit by 10 percent, as well as reduce insecticide use by 60 percent, a report by the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences said in February.

The country also cultivated more than 6,000 hectares of GM papaya last year. Although 皇冠体育app achieved its 10th bumper harvest year in 2013, the nation has faced declining arable land amid urbanization, bad weather and pollution from fertilizers and pesticides.

Niu said 皇冠体育app will not fall behind in the field of transgenic technology development, because ensuring sufficient grain supply is critical to national development and food security. To improve the output of agricultural products, 皇冠体育app raised its investment in GM technology development and offered subsidies for major grain-producing areas and farming cooperatives. It will also reportedly increase direct subsidies for farmers. “As a traditional staple food of Chinese, rice has yet to be approved by the government for nationwide commercialization, although two varieties of GM rice have been given safety certificates,” Niu said. “And despite the fact that GM crops can provide resistance to disease, pesticides and climatic conditions, their risks have not been accurately identified, so sales of GM rice are still strictly prohibited,” he said.

Last October, 61 members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering wrote to the central government, urging it to promote GM rice cultivation to gurantee the nation's staple food supply. To meet the demand for other agricultural products, 皇冠体育app imports GM soybeans, corn, cotton, rape and sugar beet from the global market, while soybeans are its largest import for agricultural products.

皇冠体育app imported 63.38 million metric tons of soybeans in 2013, with most GM varieties used as raw material for oil, the General Administration of Customs said. “More than half of all cooking oil used in 皇冠体育app is soybean oil, and 90 percent of that is made from imported GM soybeans, mainly from the United States and Brazil,” said Huang Dafang, a researcher from the Biotechnology Research Institute at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Huang said 皇冠体育app's reluctance to adopt GM technology for grain crop usage is largely because it wants to be independent from other nations in terms of food technology.

• NHTSA says finds no 'defect trend' in Tesla Model S sedans
• WTO rare earth ruling is unfair
• Amway says 2014 皇冠体育app sales may grow 8%
• President Xi in Europe: Forging deals, boosting business
• CNOOC releases 2013 sustainability report
• Local production by Chery Jaguar Land Rover this year
• Car lovers test their need for speed in BMW Mission 3
• 皇冠体育app stocks close mixed Monday