Japan Says Imported US Feed Samples 0.5% GMO Corn -Kyodo

Dow Jones Newswires 16nov00

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- A genetically modified (GMO) corn banned in Japan, known as StarLink, accounted for an average 0.5% in weight terms of 10 samples of imported U.S. corn for animal feed in which its presence was detected recently, the farm ministry said Thursday.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said StarLink accounted for between 0.2% and 1.2% of the 10 samples which were found to contain the GMO corn strain out of 15 tested, Kyodo news service reports.

The ministry tested the 15 samples from April through June in response to growing consumer concern about GMO foods.

An analysis is now underway of corn samples taken from July through September, the ministry said.

Japan has banned StarLink corn entirely, while the United States has approved it only for animal consumption.

Some parties have warned that the banned GMO variety, which contains a germ-killing gene, could cause allergic reactions in humans, as it is slow to break down inside the body.

The concern led the U.S. to decide to start as early as next week inspections of shipments to Japan of corn meant for human consumption.

Earlier, Japan suspended U.S. corn imports over fears about GMO strains but recently resumed them following the U.S. pledge.