Perceptions and Attitudes of Singaporeans towards Genetically Modified Food

Abstract

This study examines the perceptions and attitudes of Singaporean residents who attended the first public lecture on genetically modified (GM) food in the country. Scales were developed for the underlying consumer concerns, and their relationship with one another and with demographic variables were examined. Slightly more than half of those who attended the talk (n= 417) indicated that they were worried about GM foods and 86 percent agreed or strongly agreed that GM foods should be labeled. Issues relating to health, ethics, and perceived benefits were the major underlying concerns. These were related to several demographic variables and also to perceived knowledge about biotechnology. Women were more concerned about the ethical and health aspects compared to men. Those with post‐graduate education were the least concerned about health and ethical issues and more likely to buy GM foods if consumer benefits are shown. Married respondents were less concerned about health issues compared to single ones. Also, those with children under fifteen years of age were less concerned about health issues compared to others and more likely to buy GM foods if consumer benefits are shown. Respondents subscribing to the Hindu religion were more likely than others to buy GM foods If benefits are shown. Also, those who considered themselves vegetarians were more concerned about the ethical aspects of GM foods compared to others.

Investigating GM risk perceptions: A survey of anti-GM and environmental campaign group members

“…The study revealed that women considered the risks of current GM technology to be greater than men considered them to be (average value of risks under scenario one was 4 as opposed to 3.5) (Table 3). This finding corresponds to surveys conducted with members of the general public that women considered GM food to be more risky than men (Subrahmanyan and Cheng, 2000;Moon and Balasubramanian, 2001). A study by Isaacs (2001) investigating acceptance of GM foods found no significant difference in willingness to buy or unwillingness to buy among many socio-demographic variables.…”

“…Previous studies have revealed a diversity of consumer concerns relating to GM food, including unpredictable health risks (Lemkow, 1993;Olubobokun et al, 2001;Isaacs, 2001;Subrahmanyan and Cheng, 2000;Verdurme et al, 2001a), environmental safety risks (Olubobokun et al, 2001;Isaacs, 2001), and the structure of agri-business (Isaacs, 2001). There are fears that there may be long-term environmental effects (Lemkow, 1993), risks to future generations (Poortinga and Pidgeon, 2003;Rosati and Saba, 2000), and long-term food safety issues (Grove-White et al, 1997).…”

Impact of genetic modification on country image of imported food products in European markets: Perceptions of channel members

“…Negative opinions of GM foods have also been reported from other countries including Singapore (Subrahmanyan and Cheng, 2000) and New Zealand (Campbell et al, 2000;Gamble and Gunson, 2002). Consumer concerns regarding GM foods have been categorised as: concern for public safety, moral concerns, and fear of loss of individual life (Bredahl et al, 1998).…”

Struktur dan Konsistensi Sikap Makanan Terubah Suai Genetik Pengguna Muslim: Cadangan Kerangka Konseptual

“…Kajian sikap terhadap GMF daripada konteks pengguna Asia turut melibatkan negara-negara maju seperti Jepun (Ishiyama et al 2012), Korea Selatan (Kim, Kim & Besley 2012), Taiwan (Chen 2008(Chen , 2011 dan Singapura (Subrahmanyan & Cheng 2000). Dapatan ini menunjukkan pembangunan model sikap pengguna terhadap GMF masih kurang dijalankan daripada perspektif pengguna di negara-negara sedang membangun.…”