Why Did Colored Corn Prices Plunge So Sharply?

Colored corn, as an emerging crop in the farming industry, is not obtained through genetic modification but is simply a hybrid variety; yet it has been “maligned” by rumors about GMOs, causing its price to plummet. The public should also improve its understanding of genetically modified products and step out of scientific blind spots.

On July 2, Wan Xukui, chairman of the Fumin Professional Cooperative in Luxian County, Sichuan, said: “In mid-June, the colored fresh-eating corn we planted entered the picking period. It had barely gone on sale when the price plunged. In previous years, the price at the field edge was three to four yuan per kilogram, but now it sells for only one or two yuan.” Yet white waxy corn, which is also used as fresh-eating corn, was priced several jiao higher than in previous years.

Both are fresh-eating corn, so why is one priced high and the other low? To find out, the author interviewed growers, wholesalers, and relevant experts from the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Rumored to be “genetically modified,” colored corn prices plunge

According to reports, at the Sichuan session of the National Fresh-Eating Corn Conference held in May this year, because of the broad market and good income-boosting results, the planting area of fresh-eating corn in Sichuan Province has been increasing by 10%-15% each year. As of now, the planting area of fresh-eating corn in Sichuan Province exceeds 1 million mu, of which colored corn accounts for more than half. Combined with the emerging processing industry, fresh-eating corn has quietly become an important industry for increasing farmers' income in the province.

After surveying the fresh-eating corn market last year, Wan Xukui planted 200 mu in his first season this year, most of it the colored sweet-waxy series, with a yield of more than two thousand jin per mu, but unexpectedly encountered a sharp price plunge.

“Previously colored corn was 8 yuan per kilogram, and in May it still sold for 6 or 8 yuan, but in June it sold for only two or three yuan.” said Ms. Wang, owner of a community vegetable shop in Chengdu. In supermarkets such as Renrenle in Chengdu, colored fresh-eating corn was also being dumped at 3 yuan per kilogram.

When it comes to the reason for the sharp drop in fresh-eating colored corn prices this year, Lin Wangming, chairman of the Chengdu Wangming Corn Specialized Cooperative, analyzed: colored corn from other provinces spoiled during long-distance transport, dragging down prices, and it is also an indisputable fact that the province's output has increased year by year, but the sudden plunge in prices goes beyond common sense. “The main reason is that some rumors appeared online this year saying that colored corn is genetically modified corn, causing a large loss of buyers.” According to estimates, Sichuan Province had 300,000 to 400,000 mu of medium-maturity colored corn picked in June, and growers' income losses for this season were at least more than 1/3.

Searching online for keywords such as “fruit corn / flower (colored) corn + genetically modified” turned up more than 400,000 related links. The most recently widely read one was a post titled “The United States declares genetically modified food toxic,” which mentioned some characteristics of genetically modified corn that are somewhat similar to colored corn. According to investigation, this post has been repeatedly sent online in recent years, and although it was long ago refuted as having “credibility close to zero” by netizens from science and technology groups such as “Rumor Crusher,” some people still blindly echo it.

“Ordinary people don't understand this; they would rather believe it exists than believe it doesn't.” Wholesaler He confirmed, “Previously there were sales of nearly a thousand jin a day, but now only three or four hundred jin are sold.” “These rumors not only hurt farmers, but make life hard for us too. The corn won't sell, and the shelf life is short, so in the end we sold it below the purchase price.” Seller Wei, who has sold fresh-eating corn for 3 years, said he had never encountered this situation before.

Colored kernels come from “natural selection + hybridization”

Regarding the related rumors online, Yang Yuehua, associate researcher at the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said that first of all it can be judged that the colored kernels of fresh-eating sweet-waxy corn do not come from genetic modification, but rather preserve and pass down different plant traits through natural selection and hybridization from the plant genetic diversity that already exists in nature, such as purple potatoes, long eggplants, yellow-fleshed watermelons and other “special” fruits and vegetables, which were all bred in this way. The so-called claim that “bright colors mean genetically modified” has no scientific basis.

Second, the main functions of the genetically modified technology currently used are, first, pest resistance, and second, weed control.

From the perspective of farming systems, the picking period for fresh-eating corn is very short, and it is picked before the adult insects appear; in addition, growers do not spray herbicides at the seedling stage, but rather before sowing, after the grass seeds begin to germinate; furthermore, most use plastic-film mulching cultivation and do not need to spray herbicides, so the two most advantageous functions of genetic modification are not needed.

Third, from the perspective of resources, fresh-eating corn is divided into waxy corn, sweet corn, and sweet-plus-waxy corn. Among them, waxy corn originated in southwestern China, and China's research level on waxy corn represents the world's leading level, so there is no need to introduce seeds from abroad. From the perspective of China's seed management system, apart from cotton and papaya, the state has not yet allowed the planting of any other genetically modified crops, and all approved crop varieties have passed “non-genetically modified” identification; those not yet approved have also undergone strict seed sampling inspections and can only be planted if qualified.

“Fresh-eating corn has a short maturity period and concentrated varieties, and it already circulates across provinces in the Sichuan, Chongqing, and Yunnan markets, so price fluctuations are normal.” Zhao Yumin, secretary-general of the organizing committee of the China Fresh-Eating Corn Conference, believes that in terms of output, fresh-eating corn has not yet reached the level of flooding the market, and the next step is for distributors to expand sales channels and adjust retail prices according to purchase prices.

As for the “collateral damage” caused by rumors, it is necessary to increase the popularization of science and technology and improve understanding of genetically modified products.

Yang Yuehua suggested speeding up the approval (recognition) of new sweet-waxy corn varieties and strictly managing the use of unapproved varieties (especially varieties introduced from abroad). Government regulatory authorities should strengthen efforts to crack down on the spread of harmful and false information, protect farmers' legitimate interests, and create a truthful and safe consumption environment for consumers.