December 5, 2009

Philippines approves Syngenta's GA21 corn trait

Syngenta's GA21 corn trait has been approved in the Philippines, opening the way for the development of corn varieties with enhanced herbicide-resistance.

The announcement came a day after China officially approved the cultivation of GM corn and rice to ensure 30-percent increases in yields.

Syngenta said the assessments conducted by the Philippines' Department of Agriculture (DA) and other agencies showed GA21 posed no harm to human health and environmental risks.

The company said the corn trait has a built-in resistance to herbicides and offers growers higher yields and reduced production costs.

The government approval has spurred Syngenta, which said it would accelerate the development and introduction of better hybrid varieties and new traits to help the Asia Pacific region yield bigger harvests.