December 22, 2014
Bayer set to launch GE soy variety in US after China OK
Bayer plans to launch commercially in the US a genetically engineered soyvariety next year after it was officially approved by China for import.
Bayersaid Friday that China had officially approved the CropScience soy variety LL55 Liberty Link after seven years of review, according to a Reuters report.
Interviewed by Reuters, Diego Angelo, director of Bayer''s US soybean operations, said the approval of LL55 was "great news" for both growers and Bayer.
Angelo said, however, that China''s approval came too late for farmers in the Midwest who have already ordered their soy seeds for 2015. Growers in southern states, who typically wait longer to select their varieties, would still be able to plant LL55 probably on 200,000 to 300,000 acres, Angelo added.
Earlier on Wednesday, US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said China had approved imports of GE soy developed by Bayer and DuPont Pioneer and of Agrisure Viptera corn developed by Swiss firm Syngenta AG.
As of Friday, Syngenta and DuPont said they had not received approval notices, Reuters reported.
China accounted for nearly 60% of US soy exports and 12% of corn exports in 2012.
In November 2013, however, China began rejecting US corn--of which 90% is genetically engineered--saying it was tainted with Viptera, a trait approved for planting in the US.
Grain exporters Cargill and Trans Coastal Supply as well as US farmers in 11 states have sued Syngenta over alleged losses after China''s rejection of the GE corn. Syngenta said Viptera had tougher defenses against pests such as black cutworms and corn earworms.