China's Agriculture Ministry will start accepting applications from Monday for permits to allow Brazilian soyabeans to enter the country after April 20, when an interim import measure expires, officials said on Wednesday.
The move will ensure that China's soyabean imports, worth more than $2 billion annually, remain smooth with Brazil, the world's second-biggest producer of the oilseed.
China had already begun processing applications for soyabeans imported from the United States and Argentina, but not from Brazil because it had not received official documents certifying that Brazilian soyabeans were safe for human consumption.
"The Brazilian government has just forwarded us the relevant official papers," said an official at the agriculture ministry's office in charge of genetically modified food imports.
China, the world's top soyabean buyer, bought 6.5 million tonnes of soyabeans from Brazil in 2003, accounting for 31 percent of its total imports of 20.7 million tonnes for the year.
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