A European Commission rule was adopted giving countries in the European Union the option to opt out of growing genetically modified crops. According to the commission's website, 27 of the EU's 19 member states have voted to ban GMOs partially or completely.

“Many countries, such as France, Germany, Austria, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Poland, Denmark, Malta, Slovenia, Italy and Croatia, have opted for a total ban. The French-speaking region of Belgium, Wallonia, has emerged from the election alongside Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland."

In the area of ​​GMOs in consumer food products, the EU has specific regulations requiring the labeling of GMOs in consumer food; this is something the United States will also begin to implement in January 2022.

Other than mandatory labeling in the United States, there is no official legislation by the Department of Agriculture or the Food and Drug Administration banning GMOs. However, Humboldt, Mendocino, Trinity, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, and Marin counties in California are counties that have successfully banned GM crops in the United States.

Countries around the world continue to discuss the use of GMOs. In 2016, Russia introduced a complete ban on growing or producing food using genetically modified plants or animals.

This resulted from a 2013-year moratorium on GMOs in 10 so that more experiments, tests and new research methods can be developed. According to Irina Ermakova, Vice President of the National Genetic Safety Association during the moratorium, “Biotechnology should definitely be developed but GMOs must be stopped. (We) must stop its spread.”

Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Bhutan and Saudi Arabia in Asia also ban GMOs; and Belize, Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela in the Americas. Of the 47 countries in Africa, only four have legalized the cultivation of GMO crops: South Africa, Burkina Faso, Sudan and Nigeria.

Some countries that have not banned GMOs have restrictions or are temporarily banned until further research is done. According to Zimbabwe's policy on GMO foods, outlined in the article "No to GMOs, Position Has Not Changed," the country will continue to ban GMOs until more evidence is found. As of now, the country prohibits the production of GMOs.

As Peru's 10-year GMO ban will expire in 2021, according to a report by Organic, the country teamed up with the "La Biodiversidad es nuestra Identidad (Biodiversity is Our Identity)" campaign to support the continuation of the ban in 2020. According to the report, banning GMOs in the country has helped support 75 million smallholder farming families, which provide about 2,2% of the country's production.

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