What consumers don't know about genetically modified food, and how that affects beliefs

Abstract

In the debates surrounding biotechnology and genetically modified (GM) food, data from consumer polls are often presented as evidence for precaution and labeling. But how much do consumers actually know about the issue? New data collected from a nationwide U.S. survey reveal low levels of knowledge and numerous misperceptions about GM food. Nearly equal numbers of consumers prefer mandatory labeling of foods containing DNA as do those preferring mandatory labeling of GM foods. When given the option, the majority of consumers prefer that decisions about GM food be taken out of their hands and be made by experts. After answering a list of questions testing objective knowledge of GM food, subjective, self-reported knowledge declines somewhat, and beliefs about GM food safety increase slightly. Results suggest that consumers think they know more than they actually do about GM food, and queries about GM facts cause respondents to reassess how much they know. The findings question the usefulness of results from opinion polls as a motivation for creating public policy surrounding GM food.-McFadden, B. R., Lusk, J. L. What consumers don't know about genetically modified food, and how that affects beliefs.

Consumers’ perceptions of GM‐free labelled foods: A sensory experiment

“…Both subjective and objective knowledge were measured, as there is often a large discrepancy between these concepts (House et al, ). Subjective knowledge (‘How knowledgeable would you say you are about genetic modification in food?’) was measured on a 5‐point Likert scale, ranging from 1—not at all knowledgeable, to 5—very knowledgeable (McFadden & Lusk, ). Objective knowledge was based on 4 true/false questions (GM products contain genes while GM‐free products do not contain genes; Human genes can change through consuming GM products; GM technology is often based on the transfer mechanism with Agrobacterium (a bacteria which possess the possibility to insert a foreign piece of DNA in another organism).…”

“…Furthermore, an overall attitude question ‘What is your attitude towards GM food?’ (5‐point Likert scale; ranging ‘from 1 –very negative, to 5 – very positive’) (Lehrman & Johnson, ) was asked to obtain a global opinion of participants attitudes towards the use of GM in food products, in addition to 10 specific statements about the impacts of GM technology (e.g., on health, environment, agriculture, economics; 5‐point agreement scale). The statements on objective knowledge and attitude were derived from various sources (De Steur et al, ; House et al, ; McFadden & Lusk, ; Zheng et al, ).…”

Perception and Attitude toward GM Technology among Agribusiness Managers in China as Producers and as Consumers

“…A series of studies on attitudes towards GM technology application in agriculture have focused on consumers, farmers [5,[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] and a few other stakeholders [23,24]. There is a dearth of research on agribusiness managers' perception and their choices on GM technology.…”

Detection and Quantification of Genetically Modified Soybean in Some Food and Feed Products. A Case Study on Products Available on Romanian Market

“…Legislation requiring mandatory labeling of food products containing GMO stems from the need and right of consumers to know about the technologies used to produce the food they consume [15,16]. Compulsory labeling of these products may be ineffective because a large proportion of consumers do not understand the exact problem [17]. Although many consumers claim to oppose genetically modified food, there is a general lack of knowledge about genetically modified foods.…”