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BUENOS AIRES -- Farm sector representatives in Argentina, the world's second-largest producer of genetically modified (GMO) crops, praised the European Union's lifting of a five-year ban on new GMO foods even though Argentine exports will not benefit immediately.

The EU's executive arm on Wednesday authorized imports of a maize known as Bt-11, marketed by Swiss agrochemicals giant Syngenta , which will be sold in supermarkets as tinned sweetcorn.

"The measure is a step forward because it could lead to future approvals in the bloc, but it is not important on an economic level," a spokesman at Argentina's agriculture department said.

Although Bt-11 maize is approved in Argentina, very little of it is grown and so the effect of the EU's approval will be minimal, said Juan Kiekebush, director of regulatory matters for Syngenta in Latin America.

"But the concept of a moratorium has been laid to rest. It's symbolic and it's very important because the biggest resistance to this technology is in the EU," Kiekebush added.

Argentina's production of GMO crops is second only to the United States, and it represents 23 percent of the lands seeded with such crops worldwide. Some 95 percent of Argentina's top crop, soybeans, is genetically modified.

Argentina, the United States and Canada have challenged the EU's ban at the World Trade Organization. A first hearing is expected in June and a final report in October.

Argentina's government is weighing whether to approve for cultivation Roundup Ready corn, a herbicide-resistant crop developed by Monsanto Co. (nyse: MON - news - people). The corn's approval is also pending in Europe.

Although the government said it will not necessarily wait for a shift in Europe's stance on GMOs to approve Roundup Ready corn, the EU is the biggest buyer of Argentine corn and exporters worry about losing the bloc's business.