Why does most of America not know about GMOs?

Expert response from Charlie Arnot

CEO of The Center for Food Integrity

Friday, 12/04/2015 09:59

It’s not that most of America doesn’t know about GMOs. It’s what some believe about the technology that sparks the controversy. In a perfect world the social decision-making process would be logical and rational, but it’s more complicated than that. Today’s environment is one in which many factors drive consumer opinions, feelings and beliefs – particularly when it comes to emotion-laden issues like GMOs – and facts are only one element in the decision-making equation. When GMOs were introduced almost two decades ago, both scientific studies and regulatory bodies concluded they were safe, so not much consideration was given to providing additional details to the public. Though unintentional, this lack of on-going communication and transparency eroded consumer trust in GMO technology and the food system in general. As a result, food producers find themselves playing catch up in communicating not just the science of biotechnology, but the social benefits as well.