Consumer Acceptance of Genetically Modified Foods: Traits, Labels, and Diverse Information - Transgenic Horticultural Crops: Challenges and Opportunities - page 198

enhanced. antioxidants. and. vitamins. (e.g.,. vitamin. C,. A,. or. E),. improved. starch.
content,.and/or.reduced.bruising.becoming.scientiically.possible,.U.S..consumers.
may,.for.the.irst.time,.see.GM.crops.as.having.direct.positive.value.to.them.over.
conventionally.bred.crops.*
FOOD LABELS AND INFORMATION
Economists. have. shown. that. food. labels. and. information. are. important. factors.
conditioning. consumer. response. to. GM. foods. (e.g.,. see. Rousu. et. al., 12 . Huffman.
and. Rousu, 15 . and. Moschini. and. Lapan 16 ).. Food. products. in. the. United. States. can.
be. labeled. for. nutritional. claims. and. for. safety.. The. 1990. Nutrition. Labeling. and.
Education.Act.dramatically.changed.nutrition.labels.on.packaged.foods.sold.in.U.S..
supermarkets. 17,† . This. law. requires. packaged. foods. to. display. nutrition. informa-
tion. prominently. in. a. new. label. format,. namely,. the. Nutrition. Facts. panel.. It. also.
regulates.serving.size,.health.claims.(that.link.a.nutrient.to.a.speciic.disease),.and.
descriptor.terms,.for.example,.“low.fat,”.on.food.packages..The.goal.of.this.legisla-
tion.was.to.improve.consumer.welfare.by.providing.nutrition.information.that.would.
assist.consumers.in.making.healthy.food.choices.
As.an.indication.of.the.costliness.of.effective.food.nutrient.labeling,.it.is.esti-
mated.that.the.U.S..food.industry.spent.$2.billion.to.comply.with.the.1990.Nutrition.
Labeling.and.Education.Act.(NLEA).(Public.Law.101-535). 18 .However,.some.attri-
butes,.such.as.enhanced.calcium.and.vitamins.A.and.C,.are.viewed.positively.by.
consumers,.that.is,.more.is.better.in.the.case.of.positive.consumer.attributes..But.
other.food.attributes,.such.as.salt,.fat,.and.pesticide.residue,.are.negative,.and.then.
the.consumer.views.less.to.be.better..Food.labels.before.the.Nutrition.Labeling.and.
Education.Act.had.a.seeming.emphasis.on.negative.labeling..Balasubramanian.and.
Cole 17 .suggest.that.this.tendency.can.be.explained.by.consumers.having.an.asym-
metric.value.function,.weighing.a.dollar.of.loss.more.heavily.than.a.dollar.of.gain,.
which.is.Tversky.and.Kahneman's 19 .prospect.theory.
The.policies.under.the.Nutrition.Labeling.and.Education.Act.also.tend.to.emphasize.
negative.rather.than.positive.labeling..First,.permissible.health.claims.are.ones.that.asso-
ciate.speciic.nutrients.with.reduced.risk.of.speciic.diseases..Of.the.seven.health.claims.
approved.by.the.FDA.at.the.onset.of.the.new.nutrient.labeling.act,.three.linked.negative.
attributes.exclusively.with.deadly.diseases,.that.is,.dietary.fat.with.cancer,.sodium.with.
hypertension,.and.dietary.saturated.fat.with.high.cholesterol.and.heart.disease,.and.only.
one.claim.featured.a.positive.attribute,.that.is,.calcium.and.osteoporosis..Later.claims.
have,.however,.been.more.balanced..Second,.regulations.on.nutrient-content.claims.tend.
to.focus.more.heavily.on.negative.attributes.(calories,.sugar,.sodium,.fat,.fatty.acids,.and.
cholesterol).than.on.positive.attributes.such.as.iber.and.vitamins.
* . Antioxidants.are.substances.that.may.protect.human.cells.from.the.damage.otherwise.caused.by.unsta-
ble.molecules.known.as.free.radicals..Free.radical.damage.over.time.is.believed.to.cause.some.types.
of.cancer..Antioxidants.interact.with.and.stabilize.free.radicals.and.may.prevent.some.of.the.damage.
free.radicals.might.otherwise.cause..Antioxidants.include.beta-carotene,.lycopene,.vitamins.C,.E,.and.
A,. and. other. substances.. These. compounds. are. sometimes. called. phytonutrients. and. are. naturally.
occurring.in.at.least.low.levels.in.most.fruits.and.vegetables.
†. Unpackaged.foods—for.example,.fresh.fruits.and.vegetables,.are.not.affected.