Latest Resources

6 June 2024

Annual report for 2023 celebrates ACB’s 20th anniversary

2023 was a special year for the ACB, as it marked the twentieth anniversary since our organisation came into being, initially in response to the emergence of genetically modified organisms and the attendant biosafety issues in food and agriculture.  As the organisation grew, our focus broadened to include a host of interconnected issues affecting food […]

18 March 2022

25th Meeting, 49th Regular Session of Human Rights Council – Presentation of the Special Rapporte...

“The type of seed system you decide to support will determine your ability to tackle hunger, famine and nutrition.” In his report and presentation at the 49th Regular Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), on 14 March, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Michael Fakhri, outlined two types of seed […]

17 August 2021

Integrate biodiversity targets from local to global levels

On 13 August 2021, the journal Science published an article titled, Integrate biodiversity targets from local to global levels, that included ACB executive director Mariam Mayet and research and advocacy officers Linzi Lewis and Andrew Bennie as co-authors. We are honoured to be part of this incredible team of African scientists, conservationists, and community leaders […]

22 July 2020

Global Network for the Right to Food and Nutrition Report

Coming on the heels of the publication of the UN’s State of Food Security and Nutrition (SOFI) report presenting the global hunger and food insecurity figures, the Global Network for the Right to Food and Nutrition (GNRtFN) releases its 2020 State of the Right to Food and Nutrition Report, which the ACB supports. Here is […]

22 June 2017

Regulatory Implications of New Breeding Techniques

This paper presents an evidence-based critique of the Report published by the Academy of Science South Africa (ASSAf) titled ‘Regulatory Implications of New Breeding Techniques’ (the Report). Our critique discusses the pro-GM propaganda contained in the Report and contrasts it with a well-established scientific body of concerns surrounding the use of these so-called new breeding […]

13 February 2017

The Bayer-Monsanto merger: Implications for South Africa’s agricultural future and its smallholde...

This paper explores the likely implications of an approved Bayer-Monsanto merger for the South African agricultural system. It outlines the trend of consolidation occurring within the seed and agrochemical industries, provides a background to the merger, criticises the rationale given for the merger by Bayer and Monsanto and outlines concerns should the merger be approved […]

13 January 2017

Hands OFF Our Food Systems! Small Farmers NOT Corporates Feed Africa

This lobby paper Who will feed Africans: Small-scale farmers not corporations! produced by the partnership between FoEA and ACB, makes the compelling case for African agriculture to transition towards agroecology and food sovereignty, recognising and strengthening the role of small scale farmers, rather than benefiting few large scale corporations with detrimental ecological, socio-economic, and nutritional […]

15 October 2016

World Food Day – South Africa faces drought, rising food prices and false promises of GMOs

To cope with drought and rising food prices, we need to urgently move away from genetically modified food and towards indigenous African crops. So warns the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB). “We need to urgently shift away from maize towards embracing a diversity of crops – particularly indigenous African summer grain crops such as sorghum […]

14 October 2016

Transitioning out of GM maize: Current drought is an opportunity for a more resilient and just fo...

Coinciding with World Food Day, the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), in a new report titled “Transitioning out of GM maize: towards nutrition security, climate adaptation, agro-ecology and social justice” makes a compelling case for South Africa to urgently transition out of GM maize production, to systems that are socially just, ecologically sustainable and provide […]

13 July 2016

Soil fertility: Agroecology and not the Green Revolution for Africa

This synthesis report summarises ACB’s research on the Green Revolution push in Africa, based on fieldwork conducted in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe over the past three years. The research indicates that the promotion of synthetic fertiliser use in Africa is only a short-term fix for enhancing soil fertility on the continent. In the […]