Japan label plan seen affecting U.S. GM crop output
Date: 24-Aug-99
Country: japan
Author: Aya Takada
U.S. farmers are becoming cautious about increasing acreage planted with
genetically altered soybeans, amid rising demand for non-GM crops from
Europe and Japan, where consumers are concerned about possible health
hazards of GM foods, they said.
"U.S. farmers are pondering whether they should continue to expand
planting of GM soybeans, as they understand they cannot ignore the needs
of food companies in importing countries," said a soybean trader at a
major Japanese trading house.
"I don't expect the ratio of GM soybeans to total soybean planted
acreage in the U.S. to rise significantly from the current level (of
around 50 percent for this year) if demand from food processors for
non-GM crops grows further," he said.
Japan imported 2.45 million tonnes of soybeans in the first half of
1999, of which imports from the U.S. accounted for 2.11 tonnes or 86.2
percent. In the same period Japan imported 9.13 million tonnes of corn,
of which imports from the U.S. accounted for 8.82 million tonnes or 96.5
percent.
Hironori Kijima, director-general of the Japan Tofu Association, expects
GM labelling will create annual demand for 300,000 tonnes of non-GM
soybeans from Japanese soybean curd makers.
"We want to avoid the GM label as it could hurt the image of our
products. We plan to switch to non-GM soybeans," Kijima said.
"We will be asked by U.S. farmers and distributors to pay high premiums
for non-GM soybeans. But we have no other option than buying from the
U.S., as there are no other comparative suppliers (in terms of quantity
and quality)," he said.
Nippon Flour Mills Co Ltd, Japan's second-largest flour miller, is
considering shifting to non-GM corn in its production of corn grits. A
company spokesman said it was also considering replacing corn starch
with wheat starch in its flour products.
For corn grits production, Nippon Flour buys 30,000 to 36,000 tonnes of
corn per year, mostly from the United States. It also buys 1,500 to
2,000 tonnes of corn starch a year.
Japanese corn snack maker Tohato Inc, which is now completely dependent
on U.S. corn, plans to switch to corn grits made in France in order to
avoid the GM label.
A Tohato spokesman declined to say how much corn the company uses for
corn snack production. But one trader at a Japanese trading house
estimates Tohato needs 200 tonnes of corn a year.
"That amount is a negligible portion of Japan's total imports of U.S.
corn," the trader said. "But the move (to other foreign suppliers) will
be problematic for the U.S. government, which backs U.S. biotechnology
companies' strategy to expand GM crop output."
Traders said it was too early to say the shift to non-GM crops was a
trend within the Japanese food industry.
"Some food makers are beginning to shift to non-GM crops. But others are
cautious about shifting due to uncertainty about willing consumers will
be to pay extra for non-GM foods, if it's unavoidable for them to pass
on increased procurement costs (to consumers) in higher prices," said a
grain trade house official.
Traders estimate purchasing costs for U.S. corn by Japanese end-users
could rise as much as 50 percent if they seek non-GM crops. As for U.S.
soybeans, purchasing costs by Japanese users are expected to rise by
about 30 percent.
Under its food safety guidelines, Japan has approved 22 varieties of GM
crops for import and sale, including soybeans, corn, rapeseed, potatoes,
cotton and tomatoes. The government will impose labelling requirements
on these crops and food products that use them from April 2001, to allow
consumers to make an informed choice.
Food products in which DNA or protein resulting from gene alteration
cannot be detected using current technologies, such as vegetable oil,
are exempt from the labelling requirement.