February 28, 2008

South Korea imports first batch of US biotech corn for food use

South Korea purchased 697,000 tonnes of US biotech corn for food use, its first, the US Grains Council (USGC) reported on February 27.

The Korean Corn Processing Industry Association (KCPIA) said it has bought the genetically modified (GM) corn for April to August shipment at US$318.23-US$337.33 per tonne.

Byong Min, director of the US Grains Council in South Korea, said this marks a significant step towards broadening the consumers' acceptance of GM crops for food use in the country.

Min said the large volume is due to buyers anticipating a rise in corn prices. Buyers seriously considered the option of GM corn way before Korea bought its first cargoes at the end of January, he pointed.

USGC said the deal was closed as a result of biotech conferences in which representatives from the Korean corn milling industry learned about the safety of GM crops.

To date, Korea has bought a total of 257 million bushels of corn for 2008 delivery, of which 56 percent comes from the US, 42 percent from optional origins and 2 percent arriving from India and China.

Most of the corn cargoes bought from optional origin will be delivered from the US who will likely enjoy over a 90 percent market share in Korea's corn import market for 2008, industry players said.