Converging Networks and Clashing Stories: South Africa's Agricultural Biotechnology Debate

The debate over agricultural biotechnology in South Africa is not only polarized, but also complicated by the increasingly blurry boundaries of food governance. This was particularly apparent during the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), held in Johannesburg in August 2002. This article explores how the politics and policies surrounding genetic modification (GM) in South Africa have taken shape within a range of overlapping transnational networks of information, advocacy, regulation, and resource exchange. Drawing on fieldwork conducted before and during the summit, it examines how South African actors identify with and draw on these networks, but also express concerns and aspirations defined by more localized experiences and conditions. It observes how South Africa has come to be seen as a pivotal site for the future of GM farming and food across the whole of the African continent.