October 3, 2012
Mexico publishes draft agreement on corn biotechnology
A controversial new draft agreement which focuses solely on seven states in northern Mexico to determine the "Centres of Origin and Centres of Genetic Diversity of Corn" has been published by Mexico's government on July 20, 2012.
This new draft is generating great controversy between numerous government officials, industry representatives, and academics as GM corn production would be prohibited in areas previously approved and released under the experimental and pilot phases in the states of Chihuahua and Sinaloa.
The focus on only seven states also raises questions regarding the status of the rest of the country. Should this draft agreement be adopted as is, without inclusion of the territory not delineated in the maps, it would be seen by many as a decisive policy outcome to not utilise biotechnology for Mexico's most important crop.