South Africa: Agricultural Biotechnology Annual

South Africa is amongst the top-10 largest producers of genetically engineered (GE) crops in the world and has approved 32 GE plant events for commercial cultivation since 1997. South Africa’s robust regulatory system for GE products, which started with the introduction of the Genetically Modified Organism (“GMO”) Act of 1997, supported the country’s leading position in regulatory policy regarding agricultural biotechnology. However, South Africa announced a decision to uphold an October 2021 declaration to regulate products derived through “New Breeding Techniques” (NBTs) under the current “GMO” Act, regardless of foreign DNA presence. This risk-disproportionate approach runs counter to international best practices.