South Africa: Agricultural Biotechnology Annual
Link to report:
Post received confirmation on United States genetically engineered (GE) soybean eligibility to enter South Africa. After a mid-summer drought, South Africa needs corn and soybean imports to complement local production. South Africa allows for the importation of synchronized GE event approvals from an exporting country. Post worked closely with stakeholders to resolve the asynchronous GE events to allow trade with the United States. South Africa is amongst the top 10 global producers of GE crops and has approved numerous GE plant events for commercial cultivation since 1997. This has enabled remarkable growth in farm productivity. Though, in 2023, South Africa confirmed that products produced using genome editing would be regulated under the same risk assessment framework that currently exists under legislation governing GE products. This risk-disproportionate stance threatens further advancement of innovative biotechnologies in South Africa and will likely have trade ramifications.
