"I'm not afraid of being blamed." The person who said this was Huang Dazhao, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a researcher of the Institute of Biotechnology of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Over the years, he has been pushed to the cusp of public opinion by publicly supporting genetic modification. This year, he once again participated in the two sessions. He still insisted on the same topics. Under the background of the “Food Law†setting up a regulatory barrier for genetically modified staple foods, Huang Dazhao urged that the domestic development of genetically modified corn should be accelerated, and that genetically modified corn should be used as an important starting point for the industrialization of genetically modified food in China, as a breakthrough in transforming China’s agricultural development. New "maize crisis" The reversal of China's corn industry pattern began only two years ago. But no one had thought that the growth in deficit data was so rapid. Some even thought that China's corn industry was on the verge of having difficulty controlling the situation. In the 15 years before 2010, the amount of corn imported from China was insignificant. At that time, China almost completely depended on domestic production to meet demand. “In 2010, China’s corn imports amounted to 1.5 million tons. In 2011, this figure increased slightly to 1.7 million tons. This year, we have signed an agreement with Argentina to import 4 million tons of corn.†Huang Dazhao told the “China Science Journalâ€. Maize is directly related to the aquaculture industry. Therefore, the consumption level of corn can better reflect the national living standard of a country than other staple foods such as rice and wheat. Huang Dazhao calculated a report for the reporter: At this stage, China's per capita corn consumption is 140 kg per year, the United States is 800 kg, and the average developed country is 200 kg. If we want to achieve the goal of China entering a moderately developed country in 2020, in the next 10 years, China's demand for corn will greatly exceed that of rice, wheat and other staple foods. "If we go from 140 kg to 200 kg per capita and multiply the population of 1.4 billion, how will this tens of millions of tons of the gap be solved? What's more, in a short time, China's demand will reach this level." Huang Dazhao said. In fact, the maize crisis had been planted as early as 2003. With the rapid development of the corn deep-processing industry and the development of a series of corn, ethanol, amino acid, starch sugar and other projects, especially the rapid growth of the aquaculture industry, China’s demand for corn has been tremendously released, maintaining a high rate of 30% per year. increase. On the other hand, the national average corn yield is less than 400 kilograms, which is less than half of the U.S. yield. In addition, under the situation of increasingly scarce land use throughout the country, it is also very difficult to expect to expand the planting area of ​​corn to increase production. At present, China's corn production increases by about 3% annually. "To some extent, corn today is also a kind of inevitable situation." Huang Dazhao said, "The lessons that corn should learn from soybeans cannot be the next industry to fall into." In the face of a new round of corn crisis, Huang Dazhao issued a prescription for genetic modification. Since it is difficult to confirm whether or not the genetically modified food is hidden for long-term damage, Chinese officials have not allowed its commercial production. However, Huang Dazhao believes that the cultivation of genetically modified agricultural products has become an international trend. The International Agency for Agricultural Biotechnology Services (ISAAA) recently released the latest statistical data on the state of biotechnology crops (ie, "GM") planted in various countries in 2011. The total planting area of ​​24 transgenic crops such as corn, soybeans, cotton and rapeseed in the world is higher than the previous one. It also grew by 8% to reach 2.4 billion mu, which is 1.33 times the area of ​​cultivated land in China; the total output value exceeds 170 billion US dollars. Taking GM corn as an example, the current US GM corn has approached 90% of the total area of ​​corn. Except for a large number of exports occupying the international market, GM corn is also widely used in the United States for energy, medicine, feed and food processing. European countries that have been conservative about GM agricultural products have gradually loosened their position in recent years. Huang Dazhao told the "China Science Journal" that in 2011, six European countries had approved the planting of transgenic insect-resistant maize, an increase of 25% over the previous year, and more than 20 varieties of genetically modified corn were allowed to be imported for processing food and feed. At present, 90% of the U.S. and 85% of Argentina's corn are genetically modified. “In order to meet the domestic rigid demand for corn, we have to import GM maize from these countries in large numbers. It is only at the time of entry that we will carry out safety tests according to Chinese laws.†Huang Dazhao said, “In reality, we only have to speed up The independent research and development of genetically modified technology can potentially rescue the crisis and prevent corn from becoming the next "soybean." Dispute "certification" “From an operability point of view, China has already obtained some very good products in the cultivation of new varieties of maize.†Huang Dazhao told the “China Science Journalâ€, “such as genetically modified phytase corn, herbicide-resistant corn and insect-resistant corn, It is basically mature in technology. If we can advance industrialization without losing the opportunity, we will effectively narrow our gap with foreign countries and meet the growing demand." Huang Daxuan pointed out that at present, major breakthroughs have been made in the cultivation of new varieties of genetically modified maize, and the technical aspects of transgenic corn industrialization have been basically solved. However, there is a lack of synchronization and coordination between current species certification and safety evaluation. Huang Dazhao showed a thick book to the journalist of the "China Science Journal". This is the "Regulations on the Administration of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms" promulgated by the State Council in 2001. The reporter saw that the regulations and provisions in it comprehensively covered all aspects of research, development, experimental production, processing, import and export of genetically modified agriculture, and realized the entire process of evaluation and management. The Ministry of Agriculture issued safety certificates for genetically modified rice and corn, and after about 10 years of safety assessment and review. The reason why the process is so long is because the assessment process is very rigorous. According to reports, first of all, R&D companies should provide research data on molecular characteristics, genetic stability, environmental safety, and food safety. Afterwards, all-round rigorous review was conducted by the National Agricultural Biosafety Committee, including experts in biotechnology, environmental safety, food safety, laws and regulations. The results of the review were sent to the interministerial joint meeting of 11 ministries and commissions, including agriculture, health, and environmental protection, for review and decision. Finally, the Ministry of Agriculture issues a safety certificate permitting production and application. Obtaining a safety certificate does not mean that these genetically modified species can enter commercial production. Before the table of the common people, it is necessary to go through the final checkpoint "certification of varieties". The controversy is starting from this. According to reports, after obtaining the safety certificate, the genetically modified species must also be approved by the relevant departments of the Ministry of Agriculture. This process will take 3 to 4 years. “The lifespan of any good variety is limited. Now that the technology is changing with each passing day, the variety of replacements is fast, with an average of 3 to 5 years to update. This management process that lags behind the technological development is equal to making the technical achievements fetal. "In this regard, Huang Dazhao bluntly. Huang Dazhao appealed that the agricultural management department should better coordinate the relationship between the certification of varieties and the safety evaluation, formulate specific methods for simplifying the variety approval procedures, and accelerate the self-development of genetically modified corn and realize industrialization at an early date. “Some people think that the public opinion environment is not good now. We should wait and wait. We don’t think it's slow. This perception is dangerous. Development is the hard truth. If you don’t develop, you don’t advance without independent research and development. Corn will one day. Will repeat the mistakes of soybeans.†Huang Dayi said, “China's demand for genetically modified corn is very urgent, and we cannot miss opportunities again.†Swimming Pool Mosaic,Swimming Pool Mosaic Tile,Glass Mosaic For Swimming Pool Hundreds Flooring Co., Ltd , http://www.chglassmosaic.com
“After obtaining the safety certificate for the production and application of genetically modified organisms, it will take another 3 to 4 years for the variety approval. This is unreasonable.†Huang Dazhao said, “Not in line with international practice. No country except China has such a Provisions."