Genetic modification

5. Problems of public acceptance

Recent concerns with GM plants have not arisen in a significant way with GM bacteria and GM yeast, despite the widespread commercial application of new GM techniques to these organisms for many years. Diabetics have used insulin from a synthetic, human-like gene inserted into bacteria and yeast, for well over two decades, with no loud public protest. Another example of widespread application of new GM is vegetarian cheese – people have been consuming genetically engineered rennet protein for many years.

However, current traits conferred on crops reduce application of insecticides and herbicides, and although benefiting producers offer no evident benefits to consumers. For those who experience no benefit but sense a possible risk, the natural reaction is one of rejection. Furthermore, allowing the patenting of the technological processes of GM (in contrast to plant variety rights that protect the output of traditional breeding) places new GM in a different position to traditional GM, a situation related to the fact that this second ’ green revolution’ is privately funded, in contrast to the publicly funded first Green Revolution. This comes in the context of a general distrust of science, fed by the historically recent misuse of science (e.g. for the development of bio-weapons) and mistakes by scientists (e.g. BSE).