Kenya Court Rules Against GMO Corn Imports, Major Win for Food Sovereignty

(Beyond Pesticides, March 19, 2025) In a major win for small-scale food producers and peasant farmers in Kenya, “the Kenya Court of Appeal blocked the Kenyan government from importing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into the country[,]” according to a press release by Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA)—an alliance of organizations and movements across the continent advocating for agroecology and food sovereignty.

“We celebrate this ruling as a major victory for small-scale farmers across Kenya,” said David Otieno, a small-scale farmer and member of the Kenyan Peasants League, a social movement consisting of consumers, farmers, pastoralists, and fishers rallying against the multinational corporate takeover of food systems in Kenya. Mr. Otieno continued: “GMOs are not the solution to food insecurity in our country. Instead, they deepen dependency on multinational agribusinesses, threaten biodiversity, and compromise farmers’ ability to control their food systems.”

Genetically engineered seeds are designed to be resistant to commonly used pesticides, including the weedkiller glyphosate, which locks farmers into dependence on multinational corporations rather than their own ability to practice seed saving and enhance their food sovereignty.

This battle for control over the ownership of land and seeds in Kenya resonates with the growing movement of consumers, farmers, land stewards, and public health professionals in the United States facing similar industry-fed arguments about the necessity for pesticide use in agriculture as a matter of food insecurity and national security. Despite industry and government claims of increased productivity and reduced pest control costs, GMO cropping systems have led to a dramatic increase in the use of herbicides and the fast development of weed and insect resistance.