Investigators from Greenpeace found illegal genetically modified corns in the province of Liaoning. (Photo : CFP)
Despite doubts over the Greenpeace report on the alleged existence of illegal genetically modified (GM) corn, an agriculture official of northeast China's Liaoning Province vowed that his office will investigate the said concern, the Global Times reported.
Zhang Jiang of the province's Department of Agriculture told the newspaper that they have already "reported to the provincial government, and investigation results will be released soon."
"If the discovery is confirmed, we will take measures to deal with the problem and inform the public. If it is false, we will give accurate feedback," Zhang added.
Asserting that the report may be exaggerated, Zhang remarked that the local government has been stepping up its efforts to monitor the commercial production of GM corns in the region.
The Greenpeace report shows that "large quantities of GM corn were being grown illegally in Liaoning Province," said the Global Times, adding that some of the products have already entered grain storage warehouses and wholesale and retail markets across China.
Li Yifang, a program manager at Greenpeace who led the investigation, said: "This situation set off an alarm bell for the country's supervision of GM crops, which is in need of urgent regulation starting from the origins [of the food production chain]."
The investigation was held from August to September last year where random products were sampled from around 40 hectares of land in the province's key cities and counties including Kangping, Zhangwu and Faku.
Greenpeace found out that at least 93 percent of the 45 corn field samples had GM components. Additionally, 20 out of 21 corn product samples bought from local wholesale markets and supermarkets were found to contain GM components.
The report pointed out that the production of such produce can be dangerous to the country's conventional crop strains.
The non-governmental organization has already called the attention of the authorities and urged them to investigate the origins of the illegal GM corn seeds. They also sought punishment for the individuals and groups involved.
