The 2025 GAFTA Contracts Refresh

The Grain and Feed Trade Association (Gafta) has developed standard form contracts on which it is estimated that 80% of the world’s grain is shipped.

Gafta has recently published revised versions of its popular contracts, which will apply to agreements concluded on Gafta terms on or after 1 October 2025. The revised contracts represent an evolution not a revolution – many of the amendments concern standardisation and minor typographical changes. However, careful consideration of the updates is advisable, given the importance of Gafta time limits, some of which are amended in the updated terms.

Payment

Payment terms contained in C&F/C&FFO/CIF/CIFFO contracts have been updated. Previous versions provided that if shipping documents were not available, the seller must provide a letter of indemnity (LOI) entitling the buyer to obtain delivery of the goods and payment shall be made in exchange for this LOI. The revised wording provides that if shipping documents are not available, the seller may, in their option, provide a LOI. This amendment allows greater flexibility as the parties now have the choice whether to provide and accept a LOI.

Appropriation

Amendments have been made to the appropriation clauses in various CIF contracts, to standardise them. For example, the date for serving a notice of appropriation under Contract No. 80 (EU Grain) was previously within 2 business days of the bill of lading date, but that deadline is been updated to within 3 business days (bringing it in line with Contract No. 48). 

Different dates continue to apply depending on the commodity and geography. For example, the date for service of the notice of appropriation under Contract No. 122 (Rice) has been amended from within 10 consecutive days of the bill of lading date to within 5 business days. Therefore, each contract should be carefully reviewed.

Quality and Quantity

Previous versions of Gafta 47 and 49 did not contain certificate final language under the quality clause. This has been amended in the October 2025 revisions to standardise the contracts. In addition, an amendment has been made to the weighing clause to resolve a grammatical error. 

Default 

The default clause has been updated in the C&F/C&FFO/CIF/CIFFO contracts. Amended subclause (f) provides that if the seller has failed to ship, after the expiry of the shipment period, the seller may declare themselves in default. Failing this, the seller is deemed in default after the expiry of a further specified period. The amendment improves the previous wording which arguably created some uncertainty by using the phrase “default may be declared by Sellers“. 

For example, clause 24(f) of GAFTA 48 now provides: “Sellers may declare themselves in default at any time after expiry of the contract period, and the default date shall then be the first business day after the date of Sellers’ advice to their Buyers. If default has not already been declared then (notwithstanding the provisions stated in the Appropriation Clause) if notice of appropriation has not been served by the 5th business day after the last day for appropriation laid down in the contract, the Sellers shall be deemed to be in default, and the default date shall then be the first business day thereafter.”

Optional Clause 131

Traders importing into the EU will be interested to note that Gafta has adopted an additional optional clause in Gafta 131 stating that sampling should be done per hold. This clause has been produced to ensure shipments are being sampled in accordance with the EU regulatory requirements for the control of contaminants including pesticide residue, mycotoxins and plant toxins.

Arbitration and Domicile

Gafta 126 (the expedited arbitration procedure) has been updated to shorten the time limit for payment of the deposit from 60 to 30 days. The deadline under Gafta 125 remains 12 noon on the 60th day after the deposit is called for. Caution is required in relation to this provision because failure to pay the deposit by the relevant deadline will result in the claim being deemed waived and time barred (subject only to the arbitrators’ discretion to admit the claim).

Clause 4.4 of Gafta 125 has also been updated to indicate that arbitration submissions shall be served by email and hardcopies shall be provided, if requested. This reflects current practice with respect to the use of email. 

The domicile clause also has been updated throughout the suite of Gafta contracts. Gafta contracts contain an English law governing law provision, and provide for disputes to be determined by Gafta arbitration. This remains the case under the revised terms, but there has been a minor update to clarify the domicile clause.

Conclusions

The Gafta standard form contracts are regularly updated to reflect the needs of the trade and the regulatory environment. The 2025 revisions follow changes made in 2024, also aimed at making incremental updates and improvements. HFW recommends that soft commodities traders also consider updating any bespoke contract terms which are used alongside Gafta terms, to ensure those contracts also remain fit for purpose. For example, traders should consider whether there are aspects which are not included in the Gafta standard form contracts which they wish to cover elsewhere. Areas such as risk and title, sanctions and confidentiality remain outside the scope of the standard form Gafta provisions and bespoke wording should be considered.