CAIRO: Egypt's agriculture ministry has announced that it made no such ban on genetically modified crops that had been previously reported by the country's official news agency MENA. The ministry told MENA that they had not issued a ban on the importing of genetically modified crops as the agency had reported on Wednesday. The agency quoted an official at the ministry as stating that earlier reports citing Amin Abaza ordering that a certificate accompany all imports to show they were free of genetically modified materials were “not correct.” Wednesday's news was picked by by Bikya Masr and a number of other international news sites. MENA originally reported that Agriculture Minister Amin Abaza “gave instructions … against the entry of any imports, especially wheat, corn and soy beans, until samples of the cargo have been examined … in the absence of a certificate.†A number of international companies and traders were shocked by the news, saying a vast number of imports into Egypt are genetically modified. Egypt imports more than half of its food products and is the world’s number one importer of wheat. Recent disputes have risen between the North African nation and Russia after bad wheat had entered the market this summer. Egypt is the most populous Arab country and wheat exporters across the globe look to the country as a major source of revenue. Genetically modified crops are widely grown in North America, South America and China. Egypt approved the cultivation of genetically modified corn just last year. BM
