A new hybrid of corn may help in the fight against GE contamination and help to maintain New Zealand’s green clean image.

The corn, developed by Blue River Hybrids and christened PuraMaize, has been developed through selective breeding, to create a gene blocking mechanism found mainly in tropical corn plant species.

The gene blocking strategy will help cancel out the risk of pollen drift tainting farmers’ crops.

New Zealand’s farming sector has a zero-tolerance policy for commercial GE crops.

But in the last decade our clean green and safe food reputation has been threatened on a number of occasions, with numerous farmers experiencing   instances of GE contamination of corn seed, harming crops and threatening exports.

88% of US corn is genetically engineered and imported corn seed carries high risks of GE contamination.

The new corn is a welcome development for farmers, giving them defence in the battle against deliberate, or accidental, contamination of New Zealand’s food supply by GE constructs.