Huge: China Refused 887,000 Tonnes of US GMO Corn, But may Accept Syngenta’s MIR162 Corn

China refused over 887,000 tonnes of GMO corn shipped from the U.S. since just last November. But it looks as if the biotech bullies are at it again, pushing their toxic corn on the Vice Agricultural Minister, Niu Dun, who expects the approval process to go through quickly. (1 tonne equals 2,204.6 pounds).

This time it is Syngenta, one of the biggest chemical companies in the world, asserting their health-harming crops on one of the biggest markets in the world.

Syngenta has already submitted the appropriate documents to receive approval from the Chinese government for MIR162, a genetically modified strain of corn. Its approval awaits only the biosafety committee’s nod.

The concern is that MIR 162, a genetically modified strain of corn, will find its way in among the DDGS despite not being approved by the Chinese government. Their concern isn’t without cause. Of 613,678 tons that were reported at Chinese customs in April, 600,000 tons tested positive for MIR 162.

“It looks like the government is determined to stop any form of corn imports from the U.S.,” said Sylvia Shi, from the Shanghai-based agricultural research company Shanghai JC Intelligence Co.

Almost half of all U.S. corn in made into ethanol, leaving plenty of DDGS to go around. China is the United States’ top importer of DDGS. Last year they bought 34 percent of DDGS exports, more than twice as much as Mexico, who imported the second-largest amount.

GMO Watch reports:

“This development did not come as a total surprise, following as it did China’s recent rejection of 1.1 million metric tons of Syngenta corn containing the unapproved GMO strain MIR162. Official news said that though Syngenta has repeatedly submitted the Lepidoptera-resistant GM corn for review and import into China, the documenting information and experimental data were incomplete and problematic. Thus the corn is still under assessment and has not been approved for import.”

MIR162 has also received deregulation from the US FDA, even though it is specifically made to tolerate higher levels of glyphosate chemicals. The Agrisure Viptera trait was intended to be used specifically in MIR162 corn hybrids, and has already been approved for use in Canada and Brazil.  

According to the company’s own website:

“The Agrisure Viptera trait is a truly innovative technology that will be the cornerstone of Syngenta’s insect control solutions,” said Davor Pisk, Chief Operating Officer Syngenta Seeds. “It provides a new mode of action that has demonstrated a level of pest control and yield performance previously unseen in our industry.”

This isn’t the first time China made a move against U.S. GMOs. Early last year, the sovereign state destroyed at least 3 U.S. shipments of GMO corn.

Glyphosate-laden crops, no matter if they are corn, soy, sugar beets, or any other GMO crop, have also been linked to thousands of farmer deaths in places like Sri Lanka. And even in countries that have refused GMO corn, it has contaminated food crops and therefore multiple foods that people unsuspectingly purchase at their local markets.

As much as 80% of ‘safe’ foods can be contaminated with this toxic chemical – used abundantly on GM crops. Glyphosate also contaminates human red blood cells, causing irrevocable damage.

If China approves Syngenta’s MIR162, then the biotech giant will have successfully infiltrated one of the fastest growing agricultural markets in the world with their pestilential seed.