Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean, home to nearly two-thirds of global biodiversity, accounted for just 3% and 11%, respectively, of global biodiversity-based product exports in 2024, according to UNCTAD.
Global trade in approximately 1,800 biodiversity-based products reached $3.8 trillion in 2024, accounting for 17.3% of total merchandise trade, with European economies contributing 49% of exports.
Tariffs of up to 16.1% on some natural alternatives to plastics, along with certification and regulatory requirements, create barriers for developing-country exporters.
African countries exported raw gum arabic at an average price of $2.28 per kilogram but imported processed products at $6.50 per kilogram, highlighting the gap in value captured through processing.
Ahead of the UN Biodiversity Conference in Armenia, the report calls for trade policies that support sustainable production, local processing and greater economic benefits for biodiversity-rich countries.
Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean are home to nearly two-thirds of the world's biodiversity, yet together accounted for just 14 per cent of global exports of biodiversity-based products in 2024, according to a new report by United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
The report found that global trade in approximately 1,800 biodiversity-based products, including food, beverages, natural ingredients and fibres, reached $3.8 trillion in 2024, representing 17.3 per cent of total global merchandise trade.
European economies dominated the market, accounting for 49 per cent of global exports, while developing countries accounted for around 35 per cent.
“Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are home to approximately two-thirds of global biodiversity, encompassing a vast range of species, ecosystems and genetic resources. Yet, in 2024, they accounted for only 3 and 11 per cent, respectively, of global biodiversity-based products exports,” it stated. These products make up 28 per cent of the region's total merchandise trade.
Biodiversity-based products accounted for 28 per cent of total merchandise trade in Latin America and the Caribbean, compared with 19 per cent in Africa. Asia, meanwhile, accounted for 24 per cent of global biodiversity-based exports, valued at approximately $900 billion.
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) identifies an estimated annual biodiversity finance gap of $700 billion, while financial flows harmful to the environment reached $7.3 trillion in 2023, according to the report.
The findings come ahead of the 2026 UN Biodiversity Conference, scheduled to take place in Yerevan, Armenia, from October 19 to 30, 2026.
Countries that are parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) are expected to assess progress in implementing the Global Biodiversity Framework for the first time. The report's authors said trade could play a greater role in the global biodiversity agenda.
They highlighted BioTrade, an approach involving the collection, production, processing and commercialisation of goods and services derived from biodiversity in accordance with environmental, social and economic sustainability criteria.
In 2024, companies and producer associations implementing BioTrade Principles and Criteria reported sales of nearly $50.5 billion, compared with $40 million in 2003. Despite this growth, BioTrade sales “a small fraction of the US$3.8 trillion in global biodiversity-based exports recorded in 2024, underscoring the significant potential to scale up sustainable biodiversity-based trade,” it said.
The report found that tariff structures can affect the competitiveness of environmentally preferable alternatives to conventional products.Natural materials such as cotton, jute, hemp and paper, which can replace certain plastic products, face average import tariffs of up to 16.1 per cent in some product categories. These rates are comparable to, or higher than, tariffs applied to many plastic products.
The report also identified challenges arising from non-tariff measures, including certification requirements, quarantine rules and product conformity assessments.
Products such as jute, coconut coir and seaweed may require phytosanitary certification and quarantine checks, while animal fibres can be subject to additional export permits and documentation related to species conservation. “Banana and pineapple fibres can also face food-safety and phytosanitary requirements originally designed for fresh produce, even when traded for textile uses,” it said.
Although such measures can serve legitimate health, safety and environmental purposes, complying with them can create additional costs for producers and exporters.
Smallholder farmers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) face particular challenges in meeting these requirements. An analysis of voluntary sustainability standards found that producers alone bore implementation costs under 51 of 87 standards examined, while they were solely responsible for certification costs under 45 of 89 standards.
The report used gum arabic, a natural substance widely used in food, beverages and other products, to illustrate how developing countries can lose out on higher-value trade.
In 2024, African countries exported raw gum arabic to high-income economies at an average price of $2.28 per kilogram.
However, they imported processed gum arabic products from those markets at an average price of $6.50 per kilogram, nearly three times the price of the raw material.
The difference highlights how processing and manufacturing can allow importing economies to capture greater value from biodiversity-based resources.
The report identified opportunities for developing countries to expand domestic processing and manufacturing rather than relying primarily on raw material exports.
The report also highlighted the potential to convert agricultural residues into commercially valuable products without requiring additional land.
It cited initiatives under the Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) programme, including projects turning pineapple leaves into textile fibres in Kenya, banana stems into yarn in Uganda and coconut coir into biodegradable fishing ropes.
Such approaches could help create new sources of income while making use of agricultural materials that might otherwise be discarded.
“This review offers an opportunity to move beyond viewing trade solely as a driver of pressure on biodiversity and to consider how it can also support biodiversity and sustainable development,” the report added.
