China’s approval process for biotech crops is beset by regulatory hurdles and delays that have cost U.S. companies billions of dollars and added to challenges for American farmers.
Industry groups and members of Congress have been urging the Trump administration to press China to make its regulatory process for approving agricultural biotech products more transparent and timely.
[Recent] high-level talks in Washington between Chinese and U.S. negotiators touched on a variety of nontariff barrier issues. A spokesman for China’s Ministry of Commerce, Gao Feng, told reporters [April 11] the talks achieved “new progress”….…
The financial impact of delays in Chinese approval of U.S. biotech crops is estimated to have resulted in direct impact of nearly $5 billion over five years, according to a study commissioned by the industry trade group CropLife International. When including the “ripple effects” to the overall U.S. economy, the report by researcher Informa estimated impacts topping $14 billion.
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American farmers have been hesitant to buy GMO seeds not approved by Beijing because the Chinese have historically been large buyers of U.S. agricultural commodities….
Read full, original article: Road to approval for US biotech crops in China beset with massive delays, costing industry billions
