In this Roundup, the MoFo Food & Ag team aims to help our clients proactively track plant gene-editing regulation to inform business strategy. This month’s highlights include: Panama is adopting legislation to differentiate regulation of some gene-edited plants and genetically modified plants. The EU is continuing to develop its roadmap for similar changes. South Korea is increasing the number of products covered by its GMO labeling rules.
Panama has approved Resolución CNB 008-2026, which establishes a new procedure for determining if a plant, particularly those developed using new breeding techniques, qualifies as a genetically modified organism (GMO). The procedure will be applied on a case-by-case basis by the Comisión Nacional de Bioseguridad. Plants considered to contain a novel combination of genetic material will be regulated as a GMO. A novel combination of genetic material is defined as the stable insertion of a gene or recombinant DNA that could not be achieved through traditional breeding, is unlikely to be found in nature, or is the result of spontaneous or induced mutations. Plants considered not to contain a novel combination of genetic material will be treated as conventionally bred. Notably, the resolution also provides a mechanism for Panama to recognize determinations by foreign regulatory authorities that a particular organism does not constitute a GMO, potentially streamlining market access for products already approved in other jurisdictions.
These new regulations may improve market access for gene-edited plants not considered to be GMOs in Panama.
The European Commission has published an implementation strategy for the recently approved EU rules around new genomic techniques (NGTs). (See our previous newsletter for further details.) The strategy lays out the planned activities and milestones at both the EU and member state level.
With the implementation strategy now published, companies operating in or exporting to the EU have a roadmap for what to expect.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms (“GMO Panel”) published a scientific opinion on the safety of stacked transgenic events. A transgenic event is the addition of a transgene to an organism. A stacked transgenic event is when two independently genetically modified organisms, carrying different transgenes (i.e., transgenic events), are crossed to create a plant with multiple transgenic events. That is, multiple transgenic events have been “stacked” into one plant. The new framework, detailed in the scientific opinion, suggests that field trials and dietary exposure assessments may no longer be required for stacked transgenic events in some circumstances.
The European Parliament recently adopted new rules that will exclude certain gene-edited plants from GMO regulations when they are fully applied on July 17, 2028. (See our previous newsletter.)
Certain GMOs with stacked transgenic traits may have streamlined safety testing requirements in Europe.
On July 8, 2026, South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety revised the Food Sanitation Act of December 30, 2025, which details genetically modified organism (GMO) product labeling standards. The update requires soy sauce, saccharides, oil, and fat made using GMOs to be labeled as a GMO, even if the final product does not contain any genetically modified DNA or protein. Before this revision, soy sauce, saccharides, oil, and fat that did not contain GMO DNA or protein were considered untestable and thus did not need to be labeled. The new regulations will go into effect for soy sauce on December 31, 2026 and for the remaining categories on December 31, 2027.
Currently, South Korea treats gene-edited plants as GMOs under the Act on Transboundary Movements of Living Modified Organisms. A proposal, introduced in 2024, would distinguish gene-edited plants from genetically modified plants. However, there has not been any substantial progress on this proposal since 2024.
South Korea has expanded its GMO labeling to include more products. At the same time, a bill that would distinguish gene-edited plants from GMO plants remains pending.