CHINA has approved imports of one of Argentina’s genetically modified (GMO) varieties of corn, Syngenta’s Agrisure Viptera, Argentina’s agriculture ministry said Tuesday.

    The Argentine Government had been negotiating access to the Chinese market for the corn strain for several years. The South American country is the world’s fourth-biggest exporter of corn.

    A source in the agriculture ministry said that China had previously authorized the import of other varieties of GMO corn, but that there had been few shipments to the Asian powerhouse.

    In its statement, the ministry also said China had cleared the import of Bayer CropScience’s A5547-127 strain of soybean, which has local regulatory approval for production in Argentina.

    Argentina is a leading global exporter of soybeans and the top supplier of soymeal.(SD-Agencies)