US says Bioceres genetically modified wheat safe to grow
Updates Aug 27 story, adds comments from Bioceres in paragraphs 2-3 and 11; from Japan in paragraphs 13-14; and a German grain trader in paragraph 16
By Tom Polansek and Julie Ingwersen
CHICAGO, Aug 28 (Reuters) -A type of genetically modified wheat developed by Argentina's Bioceres Crop Solutions BIOX.O may be safely grown in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday.
The determination clears the U.S. market for production of HB4 wheat, which is modified to tolerate drought, Bioceres said on Wednesday. It is a potential win for farmers grappling with drought and more severe weather, but risks pushback from some consumers and importers.
The United States, the world's fourth-largest wheat producer, is the fourth country to allow production of HB4 wheat, following Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, Bioceres said.
Still, it will take years for Bioceres to complete additional steps, such as field trials, before HB4 wheat is grown commercially in the U.S., industry group U.S. Wheat Associates said.
"Wherever wheat is grown in the world, drought takes its toll on yields and quality, so an innovation like HB4 holds a lot of interest for growers like me," said Michael Peters, an Oklahoma wheat farmer and past chairman of U.S. Wheat Associates.
Genetic modification involves altering a plant's makeup by transferring DNA from one organism to another, and is common in crops such as corn, used for livestock feed. Some consumer groups oppose genetic modification of wheat over concerns about human health, since it is widely used to make bread and pasta, and therefore consumed directly by people.
USDA's decision on HB4 wheat is farther than the agency has ever gone with genetically modified wheat, U.S. Wheat Associates said.
Bioceres has said opposition to genetically modified wheat is easing due to soaring food prices and because GM crops can survive drought and pests, reducing the risk of famine.
In May, the company said it started sales of genetically modified wheat seeds in Argentina, the first time the technology became commercially available to farmers anywhere in the world.
FIELD TRIALS
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration concluded a review of Bioceres' wheat in 2022 without further questions. The FDA oversees the safety of food from new genetically modified crops before they enter the market, while the USDA reviews the impact on agriculture and the environment.
Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Nigeria, Thailand, Indonesia, Colombia and Chile have approved HB4 wheat for food and feed use, according to Bioceres. The company said it received a license to perform field trials in Australia for an eventual production application.
Top buyers of U.S. wheat, including Mexico, the Philippines and Japan, have not approved it.
Japan must closely monitor the situation and would need to approve genetically modified wheat for distribution, said Kenji Okuhira, a director of the trade and operation division at Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF).
"Even with approval, whether Japan would buy it or not would depend on actual demand from millers, or ultimately consumers," Okuhira said.
Two decades ago, Monsanto Co was working to commercialize wheat bred to withstand treatments of its weed-killer Roundup, but the company halted that effort in 2004. International buyers had threatened to boycott U.S. wheat if the product was introduced to the marketplace. Bayer AG BAYGn.DE purchased Monsanto in 2018.
Some grain traders worried about the risk for genetically modified wheat to mix with non-GM wheat in bulk shipments.
"The GMO issue has declined into a sort of quiet stalemate in recent years," a German trader said. "But the refusal to accept GMOs in many importing regions, especially Europe and Asia, has not weakened."
Reporting by Tom Polansek and Julie Ingwersen in Chicago and Maximilian Heath in Buenos Aires; Additional reporting by Yuka Obayashi in Tokyo and Michael Hogan in Hamburg; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and David Holmes
免責聲明: XM Group提供線上交易平台的登入和執行服務，允許個人查看和/或使用網站所提供的內容，但不進行任何更改或擴展其服務和訪問權限，並受以下條款與條例約束：（i）條款與條例；（ii）風險提示；（iii）完全免責聲明。網站內部所提供的所有資訊，僅限於一般資訊用途。請注意，我們所有的線上交易平台內容並不構成，也不被視為進入金融市場交易的邀約或邀請 。金融市場交易會對您的投資帶來重大風險。
所有缐上交易平台所發佈的資料，僅適用於教育/資訊類用途，不包含也不應被視爲適用於金融、投資稅或交易相關諮詢和建議，或是交易價格紀錄，或是任何金融商品或非應邀途徑的金融相關優惠的交易邀約或邀請。
本網站的所有XM和第三方所提供的内容，包括意見、新聞、研究、分析、價格其他資訊和第三方網站鏈接，皆爲‘按原狀’，並作爲一般市場評論所提供，而非投資建議。請理解和接受，所有被歸類為投資研究範圍的相關内容，並非爲了促進投資研究獨立性，而根據法律要求所編寫，而是被視爲符合營銷傳播相關法律與法規所編寫的内容。請確保您已詳讀並完全理解我們的非獨立投資研究提示和風險提示資訊，相關詳情請點擊 這裡查看。
