On Monday, Syngenta announced that China had officially approved imports of corn from the United States. Specifically, China has approved imports of corn grown from (or cross-pollinated with) a genetically modified (GMO) seed that has been under review for five years.
China is the fastest-growing corn market in the world, and one of the top three importers of U.S. corn. In China, there has been a growing concern in the past few years over genetically modified food products. Coupled with inherent concerns about China's dependence on the United States, China's GMO concerns led to an extensive review of the product that lasted five years.
Syngenta's GMO corn seed was designed to be more resilient to pests, yielding a better product for farmers and exporters alike. However, lawsuits across the nation allege that Syngenta did not wait to get China's approval before selling their GMO corn to U.S. farmers and producers, leading to financial losses. However, what China initially rejected they are now accepting imports of, which could affect Syngenta lawsuits that are already in motion.