Many countries across the world have banned the cultivation, importation, or sale of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), citing health, environmental, and ethical concerns, according to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA).
ISAAA revealed that in Africa, Algeria and Madagascar have maintained outright bans on GMOs, despite increasing adoption of the technology in countries like Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya.
Across Europe, some of the strongest opposition to GMOs comes from France, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Poland, where governments have imposed restrictions despite European Union regulations allowing limited cultivation.
Russia, one of the largest countries with restrictions, outlawed both cultivation and imports in 2014, though it has since allowed limited imports of crops such as soy while investing in research on gene-edited foods.
In Asia, Turkey, Bhutan, Kyrgyzstan, and Saudi Arabia have all enacted prohibitions on GMOs, reflecting concerns over biodiversity and food safety.
The Americas also record several bans. Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Belize, and Mexico have all blocked GMO cultivation or imports, with Peru recently extending its moratorium on GMO seeds until 2035.
ISAAA noted that while over 30 countries restrict or ban GMOs, others continue to expand adoption, highlighting a persistent divide in global agricultural policy between biotechnology supporters who see GMOs as vital for food security and critics who warn of ecological risks and corporate dominance of seed markets.
