China's corn conundrum

Overview

Demand for corn (maize) is rising strongly in China and is likely to continue to increase because of the growing appetite for meat, the resulting pressure for animal feed and government policy constraints. Though exports dwarf imports, they are falling while China's buying of corn abroad rises. Despite an official ceiling of 3 million tonnes a year, the Agriculture Ministry acknowledges that use of corn for ethanol reached 16 million tonnes last year. That led to a ban on use of corn in...