Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
consumer was the slightly lower price compared to conventional tomato
puree. However, in July 1999 the GM tomato puree disappeared from
the shelves of supermarkets. Not long before, in August 1998, the public
was alarmed by a TV interview with Arpad Pusztai, a scientist work-
ing at the Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen, UK, who announced
that he had observed toxic effects in rats fed with GM potatoes. The
results of the feeding study were assessed by the UK Royal Society,
which found the data invalid because of technical limitations of the
experiment and the incorrect use of statistical tests. In May 1999, the
Royal Society concluded that the results do not provide evidence that
GM foods cause risks to human health.
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However, the results of the
1999 Eurobarometer survey indicated that in the UK, acceptance of GM
foods had decreased from 67 percent in 1996 to 47 percent. In 2002, the
upward trend observed in the Eurobarometer survey (50% acceptance)
was more distinct in the UK, with 63 percent of UK citizens having a
positive attitude toward GM foods.
The results of the Eurobarometer surveys may have influenced the
votes taken by EU member-states with regard to authorizations of
GMOs. In 2002, acceptance of GM foods was rather high in Spain
(74%), Finland, and Ireland (70%). The lowest acceptance rates were
reported from Greece (24%) followed by France (30%), Luxembourg
(35%), Italy (40%), Denmark (45%), Austria (47%), and Germany
(48%). Except Germany that usually abstains, the member-states where
acceptance is low are the same that voted against the authorization of
GM plants and derived foods. Another interesting finding of the Euro-
barometer surveys of 1996, 1999, and 2002 is that basic knowledge of
genetics is lacking. For instance, 35 percent of participants agreed that
only GM but not ordinary tomatoes contain genes, and 20 percent
believe that by eating a GM fruit a person's genes could also become
modified.
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The Royal Society. 1999. Review of data on possible toxicity of GM potatoes
(http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk).