Biotech Updates

MARA Issues New and Renewed Biosafety Certificates for GE Crops in China

October 23, 2024

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) announced the issuance of new and renewed biosafety certificates for genetically engineered (GE) crops in China valid for five years. This is according to the report by the Global Agricultural Information Network of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service released on October 18, 2024.

The recent announcement details the renewal of biosafety certificates for three GE crop events approved for import as processing materials, including one renewed GE corn event and two renewed GE soybean events developed by Bayer. The announcement also reported the renewal of a certificate for GE papaya and a new certificate for GE cotton approved for domestic cultivation and processing.

MARA also issued 14 renewed and four new biosafety certificates for genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs) for animal use, along with 152 renewed biosafety certificates for GE cotton for domestic cultivation and processing. According to the report, MARA did not issue new biosafety certificates for gene-edited events.

For more information, read the report from USDA.


You might also like: