Kenyan court bars gov't scheme to import, distribute genetically modified crops

NAIROBI, Kenya

A high court in Kenya on Monday suspended government plans to import and distribute genetically modified crops, also known as GMOs.

"An inductive order prohibiting the importation and distribution of the GMO crop and food," was issued in the ruling of Justice Mugure Thande, who added that the decision would come into force at the close of business on Monday.

The decision is pending hearing and determination of the application, the court said in the ruling on the lawsuit, filed by a farmer's lobby group called the Kenyan Peasants League.

Open cultivation and importation of genetically modified crops have been barred in the East African nation since November 2012 but the government lifted the ban in October in response to the worst drought the country has faced in the past 40 years.

East Africa is facing elevated acute food insecurity due to the impacts of severe drought after at least three years of failed rainy seasons.