As the global debate over the benefits and safety of genetically modified food rages on, China has passed regulations that require clearer labeling of these types of products.

On May 10, China's State Council considered and passed the Regulations Concerning the Biotech Safety Management of Agricultural Gene Alteration (Draft Version), reported the May 14 Beijing Qingnian Bao ( Beijing Youth Daily ).

Liu Dehu, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science's Biotechnology Research Center, commented on this situation.

"The key problem in the biotech safety management of China's agricultural gene alteration is that when agricultural products with genetic alterations are made into food, there is no label indicating that it is food with genetic alterations," he said. "As a result, consumers cannot make the right purchasing decisions on their own."

Liu added, "In the past, when crops with genetic alterations graduate from the laboratory to the field, they had to be approved by the Ministry of Agriculture . However, when they were transformed into merchandise, there were no such regulations. The new legislation will regulate the biological products with gene alterations--requiring the above-mentioned food labeling, for example--so that the issues related to gene alteration can meet international standards.

"Some countries often ban the import of certain food products on account of the gene alterations, but some countries will not. Now that we have the proper labels, they can make their own decisions."

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