Government and Policy

Science to boost food supply

By Wang Zhuoqiong and Shan Juan (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-02-04 18:56

China is boosting its genetic modification research to increase crop yields and ensure adequate food supplies, according to Huang Dafang, a member of the Biosafety Committee at the Ministry of Agriculture.

A rising population, a decrease in arable lands, and intensified desertification have driven the government to attach increasing importance to agricultural biotechnology, particularly genetic modification, said the Beijing-based Dr. Huang Kunlun, a biology expert.

As the biggest producer and consumer of pesticides in the world, China is facing rising food safety risks from pesticide contamination, he said. Science to boost food supply

The approved genetically modified strains are mostly pest-resistant, which would help avert health risks from contamination and also increase outputs, Huang Kunlun said.

Over the years, the government has financed billions of yuan in genetic modification research and development. Currently, more than 100 scientific institutions across the country are involved in such efforts on 130 different species.

To date, the country boasts the production of dozens of new varieties of transgenic crops including corn, cotton, canola, and soybean. In general, they have good properties such as resistance to disease, insects, herbicides, and drought. Many are also tolerant of salt.

In 1992, transgenic disease-resistance tobacco was planted commercially in China, making it the first country in the world to approve the commercial growth of transgenic plants.

Similarly to transgenic cotton, the traditional rice planting would gradually change from hybrid rice to genetically modified rice, Cao Mengliang, a researcher on molecular rice at China’s National Hybrid Rice Research and Development Center.

The center, led by Yuan Longping, who has been dubbed the Father of Hybrid Rice, has promoted hybrid technology successfully to improve yield and taste in China, as well as in many countries in southeastern Asia and Africa.

The genetically modified rice is expected to be pesticide-resistant and the herbicide-resistant, and the quality and yield of the rice are expected to improve, Cao said.

The use of genetically modified rice is an important solution to securing the needed food supply, Cao said.