The world’s largest rice grower and consumer, China, renewed the biosafety certificates for five additional years for two varieties of genetically engineered rice developed within the country, says Reuters. As the world’s largest importer of soybeans, China is a major importer of GE soybeans. It is amending its food-safety laws to enforce labeling of food made with GE ingredients. Reuters says the government has been reluctant to put GE rice on the market but encourages research on the crop.
In a set of reforms made public over the weekend, China removed the last of government price controls on agricultural products, says Reuters. It cited a Xinhua news agency report that China’s role in agriculture is now limited to storage programs that set minimum prices and by providing subsidies for some products.