Yulin, Shaanxi province recently saw the removal of more than 266 hectares of corn. The corn was uprooted after it was found to contain genetically modified (GM) ingredients.

The local agricultural department sampled the corn and discovered GM ingredients in mid-August. According to Zhang Chunmei, one of the farmers whose corn crop was uprooted, the management department told the affected farmers to remove all their GM crops before the end of the month; otherwise, the corn would be removed forcibly.

By mid-September, more than 266 hectares of corn crops were eradicated. The farmers said they purchased their corn seeds from a dealer named Liu Zhenguo, but claimed not to know that the seeds were transgenic until the truth was discovered by the agricultural department.

Authorities promised the farmers 1,400 yuan in compensation for every 0.067 hectares of crops they were made to destroy. However, one farmer, Fang Shijun, complained that the compensation wasn't enough to cover their losses.

Many farmers are bitter in the wake of this incident, believing that the agricultural department should have come to them sooner with concerns about the GM corn, allowing the farmers time to grow other plants and reduce their losses.

Currently, only a few breeds of GM corn are allowed to be planted in China - and those only for research purposes. Any commercial planting of GM corn is illegal. Liu, the seed dealer named in this case, has been arrested by police.