Pakistan govt rejects GM soybean meal import proposal

A high-level government committee formed by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has rejected a proposal to allow the import of genetically modified (GM) soybean meal, despite strong lobbying by major poultry industry players. Pakistan Today reported that the move follows controversy over the suspension of the Director General of the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA), allegedly due to her role in the soybean meal’s import approval process. The committee held its second meeting on May 9, where it concluded that the current domestic production of soybean meal processed from imported soybean seeds is sufficient to meet the poultry sector’s demand. A reliable source confirmed that the committee decided to defer any further import decisions for at least six months. The committee, chaired by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Musaddiq Malik, was formed after the All Pakistan Solvent Extractors’ Association (APSEA) raised serious ...