By Niu Shuping

Faced with shrinking farmland and rising demand for grains, China's cabinet
has decided to give broad support for genetically modified crops, a move
that follows a decade of research and which scientists say will likely speed
commercial production of GMO rice or corn.
In approving a master plan for transgenic crops late on Wednesday, the State
Council said it aimed to shore up the country's sustainable agricultural
development, Xinhua news agency reported.

The cabinet also urged relevant authorities to "waste no time to implement
the programme and understand the importance and urgency of the programme".

China is already the world's largest grower of genetically modified cotton.
The Xinhua report gave few details of the plan, including which GMO crops
the government will promote.

"It is a policy signal in supporting GMO crops" after many years of research
and testing, Huang Dafang, a researcher with Biotechnology Research
Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, told Reuters on
Thursday.

"I think the sensitive issue such as (commercial use of) GMO rice will come
back to the agenda again."

The programme aims to develop high-quality, high-yield and pest-resistant
genetically modified new species, Xinhua said, citing the cabinet meeting,
which was presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao.

The cabinet last week approved a long-term grain output blueprint, which
aims to increase grain production to more than 540 million tonnes annually
by 2020 so it can be 95 percent self-sufficient in feeding the country's
growing population of more than 1.3 billion people.

But analysts say that because China's arable land is shrinking every year
due to industralization, the country has no option but to turn to genetic
modification technology to increase yields.

"GMO technology is the only solution right now for the country to raise
yield and reduce use of pesticide, which is harmful for the environment,"
said Huang.

China aims to produce 500 million tonnes of grain a year by 2010, but
demand - estimated at 518 million tonnes this year - is projected to
outstrip the pace of grain output.

Still, China will likely not have to import grain in the next year or two
because it has ample grain reserves.

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