Fayetteville, Arkansas
August, 2007Source:
University of Arkansas
The
Food Safety Commission Newsletter Vol. 17, No. 3 - Summer 2007
Genetically modified wheat hasn’t
yet been introduced into the U.S. market. When that happens,
public acceptance of the product may depend on what people know
about it. Currently, they don’t know much.
A Food Safety Consortium survey conducted by Kansas State
University indicated that most respondents had little to no
prior knowledge about biotechnology, but about the same number
of people said they would still purchase genetically modified
(GM) wheat products. But when provided information about
opposition to GM products, respondents were more likely to
refrain from buying GM products.
“GM wheat has been on hold for a few years, but I think it’s
eventually going to be a reality,” said Sean Fox, the KSU
professor of agricultural economics who supervised the survey.
The cause for potential concern among marketers is that wheat is
a crop directly consumed by humans, so some inherent opposition
to genetic modification could hamper willingness to buy products
with GM wheat in them. Fox noted that GM versions of corn,
soybeans, canola and cotton have not generally been used for
direct human consumption, so little opposition has arisen from
consumer advocacy groups.
Fox’s survey of households in metropolitan Kansas City included
a definition of GM as “a process in which a plant or animal’s
genetic makeup is altered by implanting genes from other
organisms.” Everyone received that definition.
Then the survey was split these ways:
- Half the households
received a survey containing a statement about opposition to
GM that said “consumer and environmental groups such as the
Organic Consumer Association, Friends of the Earth and
Greenpeace are very opposed to GM technology because they
believe it creates significant health risks for consumers
and will damage the environment.”
- The other half of
households received a survey that had this informative
statement: “Current crops that are produced with GM
technology include soybeans, corn and canola. These crops
are processed into ingredients that are frequently used in
bread.”
- One-fourth of the
households received both of the above statements;
- another one-fourth
received neither.
Among all the households, 68
percent said they would purchase GM wheat-based products,
although 67 percent of the households indicated they had not
heard about GM processing or knew little about it. The
respondents were given the opportunity to decide whether they
would pay more to buy a non-GM version of a wheat-based product,
and 72 percent said they would not.
But the households who received the survey containing the
statement about opposition to GM products were less likely to
accept GM-processed wheat products and were willing to pay an
additional 12 cents a loaf of bread to avoid GM wheat.
“Providing them with information about opposition made them more
likely, or increased their willingness to pay, to avoid it,” Fox
said. The information provided with the survey noted that the
U.S. Department of Agriculture and the United Nations World
Health Organization had approved of GM and considered it safe.
The survey also told households that although GM wheat is not
yet available, the varieties currently in development would
provide benefits to wheat producers.
Telling consumers that many wheat products already contain some
GM ingredients didn’t affect their decision whether or not to
purchase those products, regardless of whether they were told
about the opposition to GM.
“It’s probably difficult to find food products that don’t
contain some GM ingredients,” Fox said. “Not a lot of people are
aware of that. But telling them that didn’t make a lot of
difference. It really didn’t enhance their acceptance of GM
wheat. But the overall acceptance was pretty high.”
Under current U.S. regulations, it isn’t necessary for product
labels to indicate if the ingredients are genetically
modified. If GM wheat goes on the market and into bread, that
fact won’t need to be noted on the label unless federal
regulations change. “Most bread right now contains some GM
ingredients because it contains soy oil or soy flour,” Fox said.
“It doesn’t have to be labeled.”
Fox pointed out that consumer activist groups opposed to GM have
targeted GM wheat if moves are made to put it on the market.
Although the KSU survey seems to show that domestic wheat
consumption might not be harmed by introduction of genetic
modification, exports could be another matter.
Overseas opposition to GM products of any kind could hurt
American exports. About half of U.S.-grown wheat is exported to
other countries for sale, and some U.S. wheat producers are
worried about warnings from Asian wheat buyers and consumers who
say they won’t buy imported GM wheat. |
|
