Japan blocks U.S. wheat after Monsanto GMO strain found growing wild

Japan blocks U.S. wheat after Monsanto GMO strain found growing wild | The Raw Story
Japan has suspended imports of some US wheat after genetically engineered crops were found on an Oregon farm, a government official said Friday.
Tokyo’s move came as the European Union told its member states to test imports from the area, saying any genetically modified wheat would not be sold to consumers.
Japan’s farm ministry on Thursday cancelled a bid for 25,000 tonnes of Western White, a soft white wheat produced in the Pacific northwest, a ministry official said, in the wake of the discovery of the modified wheat.
“As long as the situation remains unchanged, we have no choice but to avoid bidding for the product,” the official said, adding Tokyo’s annual imports of the brand total 800,000 tonnes.
“We are asking US authorities to disclose information related to the incident as quickly as possible,” the official said. Other types of US wheat are not affected.
Japan imports around five million tonnes of wheat a year, 60 percent of which is from the US, making it one of the largest importers of the crop.
It does not allow GM wheat. Imports make up 90 percent of the wheat the country consumes.