Browse Data and Analysis

On November 15, 2021, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare/Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) issued draft regulations for Genetically Modified Organisms or Genetically Engineered Organisms, or Living Modified Organisms intended for direct use as food or for processing.

Worldwide agricultural inputs prices have risen steeply the past year. South Africa is at the start of the 2021/22 summer production season and farmers are confronting these increased inputs prices that will squeeze profit margins.

The COVID 19 pandemic in Malaysia saw most government agencies operating at minimum staffing with most working from home throughout 2020 and 2021. This has severely impacted the number of GE events approved by the National Biosafety Board (NBB).

Sri Lanka does not produce genetically engineered (GE) crops or animals. Some GE research, however, occurs at the laboratory level, but that research does not reach commercialization.

India remains undecided on genetically engineered (GE) crops, despite its regulatory authorities clearing on the environmental release of GE eggplant and mustard events. Bt cotton (Bacillus thuringiensis) is the only biotech crop approved for commercial cultivation.

In the current marketing year running from July 2021 to June 2022, Korea’s fresh apple production and consumption are projected to rise by 13 percent after several years of gradual decline.

Since the start of COVID-19, Philippine consumers have incorporated more fresh fruit into their diet. Global exports of fresh fruits to the Philippines increased 36 percent to $695 million in 2020 and are forecast to grow five percent in 2021.

The Turkish cotton crop for Marketing Year (MY) 2021/22 is forecast at 450,000 hectares and 825,000 metric tons (MT; 3.79 million bales). Cotton consumption is expected to be 1,850,000 MT (8.50 million bales) for the same MY.

On November 17, 2021, the European Commission published a proposal for legislation aimed at preventing products causing deforestation or forest degradation from entering the EU market.

On November 15, 2021, Statistics Korea (KOSTAT) released a revised 2021 rice production estimate of 3.882 million metric tons (MMT), up an additional 1.6 percentage points from the initial rice production estimate in early September and up 10.7 percent from the previous year.

New Zealand is an important market in the Pacific for U.S. agricultural products. In 2020, despite logistical and other challenges as a result of COVID-19, New Zealand’s imports continued strong and included US$ 575 million of U.S. agricultural products.

Israel’s planted area with citrus in marketing year (MY) 2021/22 is forecast to be 16,200 hectares (ha) with no change from the area planted in MY 2020/21. The productive area is estimated at 15,350 ha.