Issues on Adoption, Import Regulations, and Policies for Biotech Commodities in China with a Focus on Soybeans

Since the introduction of biotech commodities in 1996, farmers in the United States have rapidly adopted this new technology for production, primarily for soybeans, cotton, and corn (Nelson, 2001). The United States is the largest grower of biotech crops in the world, with 101.5 million acres under cultivation in 2003 (United States Department of Agriculture [USDA] National Agricultural Statistics Service [NASS], 2003). In the United States, adoption of biotech soybeans reached 81% in 2003, 73% for biotech cotton, and 40% for biotech corn. Globally, in 2002 about 45% of soybean acreage was planted with biotech soybeans, 11% with biotech corn, 20% with biotech cotton, and 11% with biotech rapeseed (USDA Foreign Agricultural Service [FAS], 2003a). China has become the fourth largest grower of transgenic commodities, following the United States, Argentina, and Canada. China’s dominant biotech commodity is Bt cotton, with 5.2 million acres planted in 2002 (USDA FAS, 2003a). As of this writing, China has not approved the adoption of other major transgenic agricultural commodities, such as soybeans, corn, rice, or wheat. Given food safety concerns, there is global controversy about biotech foods. Many countries (particularly developed countries that import food) have implemented regulations to restrict adoption and import of biotech food products. In the late 1990s, six European Union (EU) member nations (Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Luxembourg) banned imports of transgenic corn and rapeseed that were approved by the European Union (USDA FAS, 2003b). In late 1998, the EU imposed a five-year de facto moratorium on approving new transgenic varieties, which effectively prohibits most US corn exports to Europe. In May 2003, the United States, Argentina, and Canada filed a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute against the EU over its moratorium (USDA, 2003; USDA FAS, 2003b). “The first step in a WTO dispute is to request and conduct consultations during the next 60 days. WTO procedures were designed to encourage parties to resolve their differences” (USDA FAS, 2003b). However, after consultations, in August 2003 the US took the next step by requesting a dispute settlement panel to hear arguments in its WTO challenge to the EU’s biotech moratorium. “Dispute settlement procedures, including appeal, typically take a total of 18 months” (USDA FAS, 2003b, 2003f). Japan also has strict regulations for biotech food imports. In 2000, Japanese legislation was introduced to prevent imports of food products that contain transgenic varieties not yet approved in Japan (USDA FAS, 2003d). Japan’s biotech testing focuses on transgenic products approved for commercialization abroad but not yet approved in Japan (e.g., StarLink corn is not approved for any use in Japan). In Japan, foods found Mary A. Marchant University of Kentucky

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