March 4, 2008

Spain sells Argentine GMO corn in ports

While EU still closes its doors to Argentina's GMO corn, Spain will offer the product in its ports starting April which will help ease the skyrocketing corn prices.

A council of EU farm ministers on February 18 gave a rubberstamp approval for importing GA21 variety GMO corn in grain form, but no date has been set.

Current EU rules only allow GA21, which is resistant to the herbicide glyphosphate, to be imported if it has been processed.

A report from Mercolleida, the grain exchange in the northern city Lerida, said everybody now looks on the European Commission to authorise GA21 corn, so the first boats may arrive in Spanish ports in mid-April.

Ships carrying 132,000 tonnes of corn bound for Spanish ports are due to load in Argentine ports San Lorenzo and Rosario by March 20, Reuters reported.

Traders said Argentine corn being sold for April delivery is at EUR210 (US$319) a tonne in southern port Cartagena and EUR212 (US$322) in leading grain port Tarragona.

Argentine farmers have begun harvesting corn in some parts of the country, which is the world's second-largest exporter of the crop after the US.

Although Argentina is a bigger supplier, Brazil met most of Spain's burgeoning demand for corn last year, due to EU restriction on GMO corn.

Spain has a shortfall in most grain types and escalating global prices have driven feed manufacturers to switch from wheat to corn.