Consumers go for GM food - genetically modified foods - Brief Article

Eurofood, Nov 23, 2000

Surveys often show that consumers are worried about genetically foods, but a new approach to the question suggests they actually prefer such foods. Doug Powell, a professor of food science at the University of Guelph in the US, and Jeff Wilson, the owner of Birkbank Farms, decided to see how many consumers actually purchase GM foods in preference to those produced conventionally. They determined that consumers preferred the GM food by a margin of two to one. "People vote in the grocery store," Powell says. "They say one thing on surveys, but do a completely different thing in the store." Wilson planted conventional maize and potatoes, as well as Bt (genetically modified) maize and potatoes.

DISPLAY OFFERING DIFFERENT VARIETIES

In the Birkbank Farms market, a display was set up offering the different varieties of maize and potatoes. Near the offerings were signs explaining the differences--the basket of maize was genetically modified, but no pesticides were used, while the other basket was "normal," but sprayed three times with carbofuran, a chemical pesticide. Some customers, Powell says, shake their heads and go straight to the conventional baskets. Others read the material and opt for the GM crops, apparently because they would like to avoid pesticides.