According to the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, one of the outcomes of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade meetings this week was in the area of agricultural exports related to biotechnology traits. “China announced that it would approve the importation of new biotechnology varieties of U.S. soybeans and corn ­… and also that it would pursue a regular dialogue with the United States focused on the benefits of the increased use of innovative technologies in agriculture, for both the United States and China.”

“We see this as an encouraging first step in what needs to be an ongoing process,” said National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) Trade Policy and Biotechnology Action Team Chair John Linder. “For years, NCGA has advocated for synchronizing international approval processes and thus opening markets for farmers. We hope that progress toward this goal continues.”

The news came out earlier this week that Chinese officials committed to Agriculture Secretary Vilsack that the ban on imports of U.S. corn and distillers grains (DDGs) containing the MIR 162 trait would be dropped.