DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has approved a biotech corn variety that was engineered solely for producing ethanol.

The Des Moines Register says Vilsack approved it Friday.

The corn, a product of Syngenta, contains an enzyme that reduces the costs of turning it into the biofuel. The same enzyme can make the corn unsuitable for some food products.

Companies that mill corn for breakfast cereals and other foods have been fighting the move, fearing it will contaminate their supplies. Syngenta insists the corn will be kept away from food channels.

The corn, which will go by the trade name Enogen, is to be grown this year only in western parts of Kansas and Nebraska. Syngenta hopes to eventually offer it to areas near ethanol plants in Iowa and other states.

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Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com

Copyright 2011 The AP.