China maps out GMO crops industry development plan

World Today

China has released a road map on genetically modified organisms and crops, giving priority to the development of non-edible cash crops.

CCTV’s Wu Guoxiu reports.

China has a very strict rules on GMO products, but people still question the safety of having GMO foods.

According to a global non-profit organization, International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, people around the world planted nearly 180 million hectares of biotech crops in 2015, up one hundred fold since 1996.

So far, China only allows people to plant GMO cotton and papayas. But it does import a number of GMO products, including soybeans, a major source of cooking oil.

The central government is beefing up research and its commercialization process for GMO crops, like cotton and corn. China requires all food products that contain GM crops to be labelled clearly.