The issue of genetically modified organism (GMO) corn and its byproducts has recently become a subject of heated debate. In particular, the European Union (EU) has expressed concern over the MIR162 Agrisure Viptera corn gluten feed, produced by Swiss group Syngenta and approved for cultivation in the US in 2010, but not yet approved in the EU.
As a result, imports of US gluten feed have been halted by the EU due to the possibility of unapproved GMOs being present in the shipments. European trading houses have refrained from importing corn gluten feed from the US in order to avoid any potential refusal of permission to unload.
According to EuropaBio, a European biotech association, 37 GMO crops have been approved for import into the EU for either human use or animal feed as of August 2011. In comparison, the US has approved 90 GMO crops for markets in the country.
The debate surrounding the use of corn gluten feed as a source of animal and pet nutrition has been heated, with many arguing that it is nothing more than a cheap filler material, and not very digestible. Corn gluten meal is widely used in the poultry industry as a source of protein and xanthophyll, and is also a common ingredient in many food and feed products, as well as dietary supplements.
The European Union’s policy on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has been a major source of contention, with a majority of EU citizens opposed to their use. Despite this, the EU relies heavily on imports of GMO animal feed, estimated to be around 30 million tonnes each year. This has forced the EU to legalize imports of new GMO crops in order to secure farm feed supplies.
However, the approval process for new GMO crops in the EU is much slower than in the US and South America, leading to disruption in international trade. This is because US farmers are able to grow and market new GMO crop types which are unapproved in the EU and thus illegal to import.
In order to avoid further disruption to animal feed imports, the EU adopted rules in 2011 allowing for small amounts (0.1 percent) of unapproved GM crops to be present in shipments. A decision on the Syngenta corn is not expected until mid-2012, meaning that European purchases of the US 2012 crop will be allowed, but not from the 2011 crop.
