Tonthree decades Previously, China was at the forefront of agricultural genetic modification when it allowed the commercial production of virus-resistant tobacco plants. At the time, there was enthusiasm for using genetically modified technology to grow most of the country’s rice, wheat and maize (General Motors) strains to 2010. That didn’t happen.But China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, reiterated his optimism in 2013 when he noted General Motors Crops are needed to ensure food supply in the country. Official five-year plan document released in 2016 calls for commercial production General Motors Corn and soybeans will begin in late 2019. That didn’t happen either.
Is China, the world’s largest soybean market and second largest corn market, finally ready for genetic modification of agriculture? not completely.But according to Reuters, the Ministry of Agriculture will approve the planting of 267,000 hectares of General Motors Maize in selected counties of four provinces. If it goes ahead, the acreage would be less than 1% of China’s earmarked corn acreage for this year.Still, it represents a rare relaxation of China’s control over General Motors crops.
Although most scientists believe General Motors The crops are safe — they’ve been eaten in much of the world for decades — and they face stubborn opposition in China. Some concerns are similar to those seen elsewhere. Public concerns about “Frankenfood,” the dangers of playing with nature and unproven health risks. But the opposition also has uniquely Chinese elements.Nationalists worry about dependence General Motors The crops will leave China and be at the mercy of foreigners, especially Americans, who control most of the relevant technology and intellectual property.
Chinese disgust General Motors Crops, though, pose other problems. With the increase of domestic meat consumption and the expansion of livestock and poultry breeding scale, the demand for feed grains such as corn and soybeans continues to grow. (Feed grains already account for a significant portion of the country’s total grain consumption.) More General Motors Crops will help. In 2020, China produced 6.3 tons of corn per hectare, compared with 10.8 tons in the United States, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, an agency of the United Nations. General Motors Variety prevails. But instead of embracing the technology, China has increased corn imports from countries including the US, Argentina, Brazil and Ukraine (see chart). That risks disruption from tensions with the US or the war in Ukraine.
Some in China see the rumored government move, however small it may be, as a turning point.Zhu Zijun, manager of an investment fund focused on agriculture, recently told a local trade publication that around General Motors The corn is almost gone. Regulators and food companies have already started preparing for the reforms, she said. The emphasis on agricultural biotechnology in an official document outlining policy priorities for rural areas to 2023 also offers hope.
opponents of General Motors Crop may complain, but in some ways they’ve lost the battle.For many years, China has relied on imports General Motors Soybeans are its animal feed and edible oil.Most of the cotton grown in China is produced by General Motors Variety.The reporter’s investigation and non-governmental organizationIt has been revealed that a significant portion of the corn produced in China also comes from illegal cultivation General Motors seed. Even if “Frankenfood” is a real problem, this monster has gotten away with it in China. ■
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