Consumers See Advantages in Food Developed With Biotechnology, Says Survey
Date: 5.1.2006
Two-thirds of consumers would buy biotech food made from crops that required less spraying.
A majority of U.S. consumers would likely buy food developed using biotechnology that tastes better or fresher or was made from crops that required less pesticide spraying, according to a new survey by the International Food Information Council (IFIC).
Two-thirds (66 percent) of respondents said they would likely "buy a variety of produce … if it had been modified by biotechnology to be protected from insect damage and required fewer pesticide applications," according to the survey released March 8, 2004, by IFIC, an organization that communicates about a wide range of food issues. And 54 percent said they would likely buy genetically enhanced produce, like tomatoes or potatoes, if they tasted better or fresher.
The survey — the ninth conducted by IFIC since 1997 — showed that U.S. consumer attitudes toward biotechnology have remained fairly stable in recent years.
For example, the most recent survey showed that 40 percent of respondents said genetically enhanced cooking oil with reduced levels of saturated fat would have a positive effect on their decision to buy the oil — the same as in May 2000. Only 15 percent said it would have a negative effect in the most recent survey, compared with 18 percent in 2000.
Asked if biotechnology will provide benefits for you or your family within the next five years, 59 percent of respondents said yes in the most recent survey — the same as in May 2000.
The survey also asked if consumers had taken any action to avoid biotech foods or ingredients in the past few months because of concerns about food developed using biotechnology. Ninety-four percent said they hadn't taken any action while only 1 percent said they had.
In addition, 80 percent of consumers said they couldn't think of any information "not currently included on food labels" that they would like to see, while only 1 percent said they would like to see biotech food labeled.
For the first time, the IFIC survey also probed consumer attitudes on animal biotechnology and found opinions evenly divided. When asked what their overall impression is of "using animal biotechnology with animals that produce food products such as meat, milk and eggs," 28 percent said favorable and 29 percent said unfavorable.
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