Why are GM soybeans imported in such large quantities? The shortfall would require 400 million more mu of farmland

Recently, the Science Popularization Department of the China Association for Science and Technology and the Office of the Inter-Ministerial Joint Conference on the Safety Management of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms jointly organized experts to compile a booklet titled "Scientific Interpretation of Hot Topics of Public Concern," which provides detailed answers on hot topics of public concern such as GM organisms, PX projects, food safety, nuclear science and technology, and waste incineration power generation.

Why do we import GM soybeans in such large quantities? According to the booklet, China began importing large quantities of soybeans in 2000, and by 2013 imported soybeans reached 63.38 million tons, most of them GM soybeans, all used as processing raw materials and none used for commercial cultivation. The United States, Brazil, Argentina and other countries are the main sources of China's soybean imports, and the vast majority of what is grown in these countries is GM soybeans. In 2013, GM soybean acreage accounted for 93% in the United States, 92% in Brazil, and 100% in Argentina.

The booklet states that importing GM soybeans is a successful measure by China to rationally utilize both international and domestic markets and both types of resources. Imported GM soybeans are of good quality and have a high oil yield. According to expert estimates, the total cost of processing GM soybeans into soybean oil is 300 yuan per ton lower than that of non-GM domestic soybeans. Our country's annual soybean planting area is around 120 million mu, and our varieties and technical level still lag behind those of some countries. The problems of excessive variety dispersion and mixed harvesting and planting are fairly prominent, and labor costs are also rising continuously. The key point is that domestic production cannot meet demand.

In recent years, China has imported more than 50 million tons of soybeans every year. Calculated according to existing varieties and technical levels, these soybeans would require more than 400 million mu of farmland, an area close to the current planting area of corn or rice. That is to say, if we produced these 50 million or 60 million tons of soybeans ourselves, we would have to sacrifice an equal area of high-yield crops.

The booklet states that GM soybeans have advantages such as low cost and suitability for large-scale production. Planting herbicide-resistant GM soybeans is an efficient, low-cost, and pollution-free effective means of weed control, which can alleviate the difficulty of insufficient rural labor, simplify field operations, and improve planting efficiency. With the support of the National Major Project for Breeding New Varieties of Genetically Modified Organisms, China's research on herbicide-resistant GM soybeans has made important progress. By using transgenic technology combined with conventional breeding techniques, new glyphosate-resistant soybean lines have been developed. These new lines have strong disease resistance and lodging resistance, high fat and protein content, and yields no lower than the control varieties in the national regional trials. Among them, the new EPSPS-transgenic herbicide-resistant soybean line “Hujiao 06-698” showed a yield increase of more than 5% compared with the control, an oil content of more than 21%, and a 70% reduction in weeding costs.

Is the safety of imported GM soybeans guaranteed? The booklet states that the Chinese government attaches great importance to the safety management of genetically modified organisms. In accordance with the "Regulations on the Safety Management of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms" and its related measures, it conducts strict safety assessments of imported GM soybeans. Soybeans and their products that have obtained import safety certificates are safe.