Crops / Food

Although the research capacity is lacking in Central America, most countries have GM regulations in place. Some technically allow for the limited cultivation of GM crops, but only Costa Rica and Honduras are growing them. There has been a considerable amount of cross-border harmonization of regulations on developing guidance on gene-edited crops.  Nascent support for […]

Uruguay has no specific regulations for gene-edited crops. In 2018, Uruguay and 12 other nations, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil and the US, issued a joint statement to the World Trade Organization supporting relaxed regulations for gene editing, stating that governments should “avoid arbitrary and unjustifiable distinctions” between crops developed through gene editing and crops developed

Gene-edited crops are regulated as conventional plants unless they contain foreign DNA, after a form is submitted to determine if they are exempt. Gene edited crops are assessed on a case-by-case basis by the Ministry of Agriculture’s Agricultural and Livestock Services (SAG). In 2017, SAG published a regulatory approach on new breeding techniques (NBTs), stating that

There are no approved gene edited crops or prospects for approval in the near future. Currently, they fall under highly restrictive laws established for transgenic GMOs, similar to the European Union and New Zealand.  Mexico has not reported any biotechnology food or feed products approvals since May 2018. Herbicide-tolerant and insect-resistant cotton is the only

Gene-edited crops and food are regulated as conventional plants unless they contain foreign DNA, after a dossier is submitted to determine if they are exempt. Gene-edited crops are assessed on a case-by-case basis based on the characteristics of the final product, not on the process used to develop the product. There are no commercially available

After years of conflicting public statements and legislation restricting genetic engineering, Russia appears poised to embrace new breeding technologies for medicine and agriculture. A decree signed into law in 2020 authorized Rosneft, the Russian Oil Company, to oversee government efforts to accelerate the development of genetic technologies, including gene editing, and to create scientific-technological capacities

Canada adopted guidelines in May 2023 on crops developed through gene-editing and other New Breeding Techniques (NBTs), regulating them in the same limited way as conventional crops. No labeling is required for almost all crops grown using NBTs. According to the government: ”Plant breeding innovations allow new plant varieties to be developed more effectively and

Japan is emerging as a pioneer in the introduction of gene-edited foodstuffs. It allows gene-edited products to be sold to consumers without safety evaluations as long as the techniques involved meet certain criteria — a screening process similar to that adopted by the United States. It has introduced three CRISPR-edited products to date: fleshier red

Argentina maintains one of the world’s most streamlined and predictable regulatory environments for gene-edited products. Under the current Resolution 24/2026, the country employs a product-based “prior consultation” system that distinguishes between New Breeding Techniques (NBTs) and traditional Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). The core legal standard is whether the final organism contains a “new combination of

China is moving quickly to formalize gene editing in agriculture as part of a broader food security and innovation agenda, with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) serving as the key regulator for agricultural genome editing. China has built a centralized, government led review pathway intended to distinguish lower risk gene edits from