April 17, 2008

Japan's Nihon Shokuhin to purchase 150,000 tonnes US GM corn

Japanese company, Nihon Shokuhin Kako, disclosed recently that it would import a total of 150,000 tonnes of GM corn from the US in 2008.

The company, one of Japan's top three corn processors, also confirmed that it has begun filtering GM corn into some foodstuff, despite a possible uproar from the consumer groups.

Nihon spokesman said that the use of GM corn has been stepped up in February to meet the growing demand.

He added that continuous reliance on non-GM crop means difficulty to meet the consumer need.

Japan, the world's largest corn importer, has been importing GM corn for animal feed use and buys limited quantity for human use.

Lately, Japanese food manufacturers have been torn between US farmers demanding higher premium for GM-free corn and Japanese consumers asking for affordable prices.

Nihon Shokuhin has two corn processing factories in Japan, using a total 750,000 tonnes of corn a year.

The remaining 600,000 tonnes planned for 2008 will be GMO-free crops, the spokesman said.