FYI >From: "News Update from The Campaign" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Shocking survey results from the Pew Initiative >Date: Fri, 19 Sep 2003 04:51:17 -0500 > >News Update From The Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods >---------------------------------------------------------------------- > >Dear News Update Subscribers, > >The Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology has released the results of >a new survey on public sentiments about genetically engineered foods. > >Although the Pew Initiative seems to downplay the significance of the >results, they are really quite shocking. > >Americans are clearly not aware of the extent genetically engineered >foods have invaded the U.S. food supply. Only 24% of Americans believe >they have eaten genetically engineered foods, while 58% say they have >not. Actually, nearly all Americans have eaten genetically engineered >foods since 70-75% of all processed foods contain soy or corn that has >been genetically engineered. > >Further, Americans appear to be unaware that the U.S. Food and Drug >Administration (FDA) is not safety testing genetically engineered foods. >According to the Pew Initiative survey, eighty-nine percent (89%) of >Americans agree with the statement "Companies should be required to >submit safety data to the Food and Drug Administration for review, and >no genetically modified food product should be allowed on the market >until the FDA determines it is safe." > >In reality, under the current regulations, biotech companies are not >even required to notify the FDA they are bringing a new product to >market. The very companies with the financial interest in the products >are the ones determining the safety. Not only is the FDA not >safety-testing these products, the agency has determined they don't even >need to be notified that a new genetically engineered food is going >to be consumed by millions of people. > >Most Americans would probably be quite upset if they really understood >how irresponsible the FDA has been when it comes to protecting the >public from the possible dangers associated with genetically engineered >foods. > >One of The Campaign's primary goals in our effort to pass the >Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act into law will be to get >hearings in the U.S. Congress by the committees that oversee the FDA. >We intend to shine a bright light on the potential dangers posed to the >American public from the lack of oversight by the FDA on genetically >engineered foods. In October, we will issue an ACTION ALERT that will >begin a major push for these congressional committee oversight hearings. > >Posted below are three articles. The first is a press release from the >Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology about the new survey. The >second article is from USA Today titled "Americans are iffy on >genetically modified foods." The third article is from the Sacramento >Bee titled "Confusion, ignorance about biotech food." > >If you would like to read the entire survey, here is a link to a PDF >version: >http://www.thecampaign.org/pew0903.pdf > >Craig Winters >Executive Director >The Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods > >The Campaign >PO Box 55699 >Seattle, WA 98155 >Tel: 425-771-4049 >Fax: 603-825-5841 >E-mail: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Web Site: http://www.thecampaign.org > >Mission Statement: "To create a national grassroots consumer campaign >for the purpose of lobbying Congress and the President to pass >legislation that will require the labeling of genetically engineered >foods in the United States." > >*************************************************************** > >For Immediate Release: September 18, 2003 >Contact: Kimberly Brooks or Dan DiFonzo >202-347-9044 ext. 230 or 231 >[EMAIL PROTECTED] >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Americans' Knowledge of Genetically Modified Foods Remains Low and >Opinions On Safety Still Split > >New Poll Confirms Findings of Two Years Ago, But Reveals FDA Key to >Acceptance; Discomfort with Shift from Plants To Animals Apparent > >Washington, DC - Americans' knowledge of genetically modified (GM) foods >remains low and their opinions about its safety are just as divided as >they were two years ago, according to a new survey released today by the >Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology. The survey also shows that >knowing FDA reviewed and approved a GM product can increase public >confidence and that public support for GM products decreases as uses of >the technology shift from plants to animals. > >Using data from a similar survey released by the Pew Initiative in March >2001 for tracking purposes, the survey released today suggests: > >* Americans' knowledge about GM foods remains low - even as GM >technology is increasingly applied to agriculture. In 2001, 44% had >heard "a great deal" or "some" about genetically modified foods; today, >that number is 34%, a 10 point decline. Similarly, 45% had heard "a >great deal" or "some" about biotechnology use in food production; today, >that number is 36%, a nine point decline. Although it has been >estimated that 70-75% of processed foods in grocery stores contain GM >foods, just 24% of Americans believe they have eaten GM foods while 58% >say they have not, suggesting that Americans continue not to recognize >the extent to which GM foods are present in foods they eat every day. > >* Opposition to GM foods has softened somewhat in the last two years but >opinions about safety remain split. Today, 25% of people polled >reported they would support the introduction of GM foods to the U.S. >food supply, down only 1 point from 26% in 2001. At the same time, >opposition has declined ten points, from 58% opposed in 2001 to 48% >opposed today. But Americans have essentially the same opinion about >the overall safety of GM foods as they did in 2001: 27% of consumers say >that GM foods are "basically safe" (down from 29%), while 25% say that >they are "basically unsafe" (the same as in 2001). Taken together, >these numbers indicate that the American public continues to have >divided opinions about GM foods. > >The survey released today also probed topics rarely explored in >widely-available opinion polls about agricultural biotechnology, >including how Americans feel about the way GM products are regulated in >the U.S. and the application of genetic engineering technology to >animals. Findings show: > >* Americans oppose a ban on GM foods, but are strongly supportive of a >regulatory process that directly involves the FDA. Sixty-four percent >(64%) of Americans disagree with the statement, "genetically modified >foods should not be allowed to be sold even if the Food and Drug >Administration believes they are safe," but very few believe that GM >foods should be allowed to go on the market without FDA review. >Eighty-nine percent (89%) of Americans agree with the statement >"Companies should be required to submit safety data to the Food and Drug >Administration for review, and no genetically modified food product >should be allowed on the market until the FDA determines it is safe." >Taken together, these statistics demonstrate that consumers want to see >that FDA is involved with a genetically modified food product before it >is put on the market. > >* Americans are far more comfortable with genetic modifications to >plants than animals, and are particularly supportive of genetic >modifications that improve health. The majority of people polled (58%) >oppose scientific research into genetic modifications of animals. When >asked to rate how "comfortable" they are with genetic modifications of >different types of life forms, consumers say they are most comfortable >with modifications of plants, followed by genetic modifications of >microbes, animals used for food, insects and then animals used for other >purposes, such as horses, cats and dogs. When asked about specific >purposes for pursuing genetic modifications, nearly every purpose that >involved plants (e.g. reducing the need to use pesticides) was >considered a better reason to pursue genetic modifications than those >that involved animals (e.g. produce beef with less fat). > >"When it comes to genetically modified products, the U.S. public clearly >supports the role of regulatory bodies like the FDA to provide an >independent safety approval for new biotechnology food products," said >Michael Rodemeyer, executive director of the Pew Initiative on Food and >Biotechnology. "This finding suggests that the actions of government >agencies are likely to play an important role in influencing public >acceptance of the next generation of agricultural biotechnology >products." > >The nationwide survey, conducted August 5-10, 2003 by The Mellman Group >and Public Opinion Strategies, consisted of telephone interviews of >1,000 American consumers. The margin of error for this survey is +/- >3.1%. The margin of error is higher for subgroups. Data from a similar >survey, released by the Pew Initiative in March 2001, was used for >tracking purposes. > >A summary of findings from the survey, as well as the statistical >results can be viewed at http://pewagbiotech.org/research/2003update/ > >Results of the poll released in March 2001 can be viewed at >http://pewagbiotech.org/research/gmfood/survey3-01.pdf > >*************************************************************** > >Americans are iffy on genetically modified foods > >By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY >Posted 9/17/2003 8:16 PM > >Americans still don't know much about genetically modified foods, even >though increasing amounts of their food comes from biotech corn and >soybeans, according to a poll released today by the non-partisan Pew >Initiative on Food and Biotechnology. > >Support for the introduction of GM foods into the food supply is >divided: One-quarter of Americans are in favor and almost half are >opposed. But opposition is softening, to 48% from 58% two years ago, >when Pew first polled consumers. > >Opinions about the safety of GM food haven't budged much. Just above >one-quarter of Americans, 27%, say the foods are basically safe, and >exactly one-quarter say they're basically unsafe. > >This is where knowledge comes in. Just 24% of Americans say they've >eaten GM foods, and 58% say they haven't. But the Grocery Manufactures >of America says 70% to 80% of processed foods sold in supermarkets >contain products made from genetically engineered corn, soybeans or >cottonseed oil. > >That includes most products sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup, >which is almost sure to contain at least some genetically modified corn. >U.S. Department of Agriculture figures for 2003 show that 40% of the >U.S. corn crop was biotech, as were 81% of the soybeans and 73% of the >cotton. > >But when pollster told those who were surveyed the extent to which GM >foods are already on store shelves - and therefore that the respondents >probably have been eating them - attitudes changed. After learning that, >44% said GM foods are safe and 20% said they are unsafe. > >"For consumers, biotechnology is not a high priority," says Stephanie >Childs of the Grocery Manufacturers of America. "Knowing that it's on >the market and it's regulated, they think, 'We have other things to be >concerned about right now.' " > >But one of the survey's strongest findings was that people support a >more active role by the Food and Drug Administration role to ensure GM >food safety. "More than half those surveyed said they'd be more likely >to eat GM foods if the FDA had a mandatory regulatory process," says >Michael Rodemeyer, Pew executive director. > >James Maryanski, the FDA's biotechnology coordinator, says that although >companies aren't required to send the FDA safety data on biotech foods, >they are required to market safe and wholesome foods. "In other words, >they're not able to just do whatever they want." > >*************************************************************** > >Confusion, ignorance about biotech food > >By Mike Lee -- Sacramento Bee Staff Writer >September 18, 2003 > >Even as genetically modified crops continue to spread across the globe, >Americans appear to know less about biotech foods than they did two >years ago -- and much of what they do "know" is wrong, according to >nationwide survey results being released today. > >Research for the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology found that >even though an estimated three-quarters of processed food on grocery >store shelves contains genetically engineered ingredients, only 24 >percent of survey respondents believed they had eaten such food. Nearly >half opposed introducing biotech foods into the nation's food supply -- >something that was done years ago. > >"It's obvious that people are confused and many people are troubled >about (genetically engineered) foods," said Ronnie Cummins, national >director of the Organic Consumers Association in Minnesota. "But it's >also clear that they are not learning much from the media in their >everyday lives." > >The survey, conducted in August, also shows that resistance to biotech >foods is lessening, but that consumer opinions about the safety of those >products remain as deeply divided as they were in Pew's base-line 2001 >survey. > >Among its clearest conclusions, however, was that consumers want the >U.S. Food and Drug Administration to take a more active role regulating >genetically engineered foods. > >About a decade after the first biotech foods were introduced, the >industry remains largely self-regulated on questions of food safety. >Most consumers don't know anything about government regulation, >according to the new survey, but they aren't comfortable with the FDA's >voluntary consultation program that allows companies to submit only a >research summary. > >"A very strong 89 percent of the respondents supported the idea that the >FDA should have a mandatory process under which they find the >(genetically engineered) foods are safe before they can be marketed," >said Michael Rodemeyer, executive director of the Pew Initiative, in >Washington, D.C. > >Those findings were in sync with a report issued last year by the U.S. >General Accounting Office, which suggested that the FDA's evaluation >process for biotech foods "could be enhanced by randomly verifying the >test data" from companies. > >Jim Maryanski, biotechnology coordinator for foods at the FDA, declined >to discuss the Pew study but characterized the GAO's recommendation as >reasonable -- even though his agency has yet to make the changes. > >"We are quite confident that the system in place is one that is working >very well; that it protects consumers' health," Maryanski said. >"Companies ... are continuing to use the system of consultation with the >FDA." > >The underlying theme of the Pew survey was that the public remains >ill-informed about a technology being used to enhance crops on 145 >million acres worldwide and one that is being touted as a promising new >way to grow lower-cost pharmaceutical compounds in plants. > >Knowledge of genetically modified foods actually decreased since 2001; >only 34 percent of respondents to this year's poll had heard some or a >great deal about the food, compared to 44 percent in the earlier survey. > >The Mellman Group, which surveyed 1,000 American consumers, theorized >that knowledge about biotech food was higher in 2001 because that survey >was conducted right after a widely publicized mistake in which >genetically engineered corn called StarLink -- intended only for feed >corn -- was mixed into corn products such as taco shells. > >"We still have a long way to go on education in science and technology," >said Judith Kjelstrom, acting director of the University of California, >Davis, biotechnology program. > >Kjelstrom said information from the industry appears to be helping >reduce negative opinions about genetic engineering. > >"It takes people time to get used to new technology," she said, adding >that Americans tend to worry about more pressing issues, such as war and >the economy, while assuming trusted federal agencies will protect them >from dangerous foods. > >Corn, soybeans, canola and cotton account for the vast majority of >commercialized biotech crops, which are designed to withstand herbicides >or resist pests. > >Biotech opponents -- a few thousand of whom protested at an >international conference on agricultural technology held in Sacramento >this summer -- fear that messing around with genes will ultimately hurt >human health and the environment. > >Nonetheless, opposition to using biotech ingredients in U.S. foods >dropped 10 percentage points between the surveys, heartening Lisa J. Dry >at the Biotechnology Industry Organization in Washington, D.C. > >"Technology opponents have worked very hard ... to make people fearful, >and they haven't been able to get any traction on that because the >science and our experience with these foods don't support their >arguments," Dry said. > >Tom Hoban, a sociology professor at North Carolina State University in >Raleigh, said he has been urging biotech and food companies to make it >clear that genetically engineered foods are already part of our food >chain. That, Hoban said, would avoid charges of deception if any future >problems arise. > >But as long as the industry can avoid another contamination problem such >as StarLink, Hoban said the lack of consumer knowledge found in the >survey may work well for those companies developing products that target >consumers instead of farmers. > >Monsanto, for instance, is working on plants high in heart-healthy oils. > >"What industry and others have kind of hoped," Hoban said, "is that they >could kind of keep genetically engineered foods under the radar screen >until there are some consumer benefits."
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