Ministry of Agriculture said to plan lifting ban on GM corn

Traders and officials have been told by the Chinese government that the Ministry of Agriculture is set to lift a ban on importing a genetically-modified corn variety, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. The approval, which covers imports of the MIR 162 corn variety commonly grown in the US, comes as the two countries begin trade talks today. “The move, if it materializes, will be a boost for China’s imports of US corn” said Li Qiang, managing director and founder of Shanghai JC Intelligence, an agriculture industry consultant. Li predicts that imports of US corn could double to 4 million tons if the import ban is lifted.