(Updates with comment from Cargill spokesman)
U.S. agribusiness giant Cargill Inc. said Thursday that it won't
accept Syngenta AG's (SYT) genetically modified Agrisure Viptera
corn at its North American wet milling plants until the corn
variety is approved by the European Union, Reuters reported.
Another major grain handler, St. Louis-based Bunge Ltd. (BG),
has already barred Agrisure Viptera from its facilities, awaiting
additional export market approval, particularly from China. A unit
of Switzerland's Syngenta sued Bunge on Aug. 22 over the
refusal.
"Cargill strongly values its right to accept or restrict
products of agricultural biotechnology, dependent on the approval
status in export markets and needs of our customers," Reuters cited
a Cargill spokeswoman as saying. "Consistent with our long-standing
wet milling position, Cargill cannot accept Viptera at these
facilities until it has received regulatory approvals in the
EU."
Thursday, Cargill spokesman Mark Klein told Dow Jones Newswires:
"At this point, we have posted signs at our grain elevators stating
that the Viptera trait is not approved in all major export markets
and that our grain elevators cannot accept this product unless
notified in writing prior to delivery, to allow Cargill the time
and flexibility to try to find appropriate markets."
Viptera, which has been bioengineered to protect against insect
damage, represents less than 2% of the U.S. corn crop, Syngenta
said. It has been approved for shipment to several major corn
export markets.
Syngenta said it has been in contact with U.S. ethanol plants to
identify "suitable outlets" for Viptera corn.
Full story at
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/01/cargill-corn-idUSN1E78017Q20110901
-Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2900