This article was first published by chinadialogue.
When permits for Chinese researchers to grow genetically modified rice and corn expired this summer, there was concern. More so, given there was little indication that the Ministry of Agriculture would renew them.
The certificates, issued in 2009, concerned two types of Bt rice, which express a gene of the
bacillus thuringiensis bacterium, conferring pest resistance, and phytase maize, which when used as feed can increase the uptake of phosphorus in pigs and chickens. This in turn can lead to energy savings and more efficient land use. Though not the only homegrown transgenic crops, these projects had attracted particular attention both for their potential to produce path-breaking examples of Chinese “indigenous innovation” and for the perceived risks of altering such culturally resonant staple crops.