Monsanto Company and Dow AgroSciences LLC announced that they have received import regulatory approvals from Korea and Taiwan for corn grain produced from SmartStax, an outcome of a cross-licensing agreement and research and development collaboration signed in 2007 between the companies.

The food and feed safety of SmartStax corn was reviewed and approved by the Korean and Taiwan agencies charged with regulating biotech traits. These two additional approvals follow US, Canadian, and Japanese regulatory approvals announced by the companies in July 2009.

With these approvals, SmartStax cultivation in the US and Canada has taken a major step forward. Grain produced from SmartStax corn can now be imported into Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Australia, and New Zealand among other countries.

Brad Shurdut, Global Biotech Regulatory and Government Affairs Leader for Dow AgroSciences said, ''These are significant milestones as we ramp up for 2010 launch of SmartStax. Korea and Taiwan are significant importers of US corn and these approvals pave the way for US and Canadian growers to benefit.''

Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products.