China has rejected about two cargoes of dried distillers grains from the United States after detecting an unapproved genetically modified ingredient in the corn byproduct, the country's quality watchdog announced on Friday.

The two cargoes of dried distillers grains, totaling about 750 metric tons, were rejected by the quarantine authority in Shanghai on Dec 23, Chen Xitong, spokesman for the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, said on Friday.

The two cargoes were found to contain ingredients of MIR 162, a genetically modified corn species not yet approved by agricultural authorities in China.

The dried distillers grains are raw materials used in the production of fodders.

As of Dec 19, China has rejected more than 545,000 tons of corn shipments from the US for containing the MIR 162 grains.