Dataset Information

Information and order of information effects on consumers' acceptance and valuation for genetically modified edamame soybean.

ABSTRACT: This study examines two different strategies with respect to managing the order in which information about genetically modified (GM) technology would reach and impact consumers of edamame, often referred to as the "vegetable soybean". Edamame are soybeans harvested while the beans are young and soft. We capture consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for unlabeled edamame, non-GM edamame, and GM edamame using a non-hypothetical random nth price auction. We elicit consumers' valuation for each edamame product before and after introducing information, and test two strategies where the order of providing positive and negative information is reversed. The results suggest that negative information affects WTP to a much greater extent than positive information. Hence a strategy to proactively deal with eventual negative press about GM technology did not lead to a different result than a strategy that would react to or attempt to thwart negative information with positive information at a later date. These findings suggest that it would be difficult to introduce new GM edamame as edible products in the market as marginally negative preconceptions about GM at the time of the experiment were easier to reinforce with negative information than to combat with positive information about GM.

SUBMITTER: Lee JY

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6200256 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Information and order of information effects on consumers' acceptance and valuation for genetically modified edamame soybean.

Lee Ji Yong JY Popp Michael P MP Wolfe Elijah J EJ Nayga Rodolfo M RM Popp Jennie S JS Chen Pengyin P Seo Han-Seok HS

PloS one 20181024 10

This study examines two different strategies with respect to managing the order in which information about genetically modified (GM) technology would reach and impact consumers of edamame, often referred to as the "vegetable soybean". Edamame are soybeans harvested while the beans are young and soft. We capture consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for unlabeled edamame, non-GM edamame, and GM edamame using a non-hypothetical random nth price auction. We elicit consumers' valuation for each edamam ...[more]

PMID: 30356270

Similar Datasets

Project description:Both cisgenesis and transgenesis are plant breeding techniques that can be used to introduce new genes into plant genomes. However, transgenesis uses gene(s) from a non-plant organism or from a donor plant that is sexually incompatible with the recipient plant while cisgenesis involves the introduction of gene(s) from a crossable--sexually compatible--plant. Traditional breeding techniques could possibly achieve the same results as those from cisgenesis, but would require a much larger timeframe. Cisgenesis allows plant breeders to enhance an existing cultivar more quickly and with little to no genetic drag. The current regulation in the European Union (EU) on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) treats cisgenic plants the same as transgenic plants and both are mandatorily labeled as GMOs. This study estimates European consumers' willingness-to-pay (WTP) for rice labeled as GM, cisgenic, with environmental benefits (which cisgenesis could provide), or any combination of these three attributes. Data were collected from 3,002 participants through an online survey administered in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom in 2013. Censored regression models were used to model consumers' WTP in each country. Model estimates highlight significant differences in WTP across countries. In all five countries, consumers are willing-to-pay a premium to avoid purchasing rice labeled as GM. In all countries except Spain, consumers have a significantly higher WTP to avoid consuming rice labeled as GM compared to rice labeled as cisgenic, suggesting that inserting genes from the plant's own gene pool is more acceptable to consumers. Additionally, French consumers are willing-to-pay a premium for rice labeled as having environmental benefits compared to conventional rice. These findings suggest that not all GMOs are the same in consumers' eyes and thus, from a consumer preference perspective, the differences between transgenic and cisgenic products are recommended to be reflected in GMO labeling and trade policies.

Project description:According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada, genetically modified crops are considered safe if they are substantially equivalent to a conventional crop in regards to agronomic, physiological and compositional characteristics. A recurring issue in safety assessment of genetically modified crops is the paucity of analytical methods to detect unintended or unexpected outcomes of genetic modification. Traditional targeted compound comparative analyses are limited in scope and capacity to detect unintended changes in chemical composition. This study explored the potential of using microarray technology to assess the substantial equivalence of gene expression profiles between genetically modified and conventional soybean cultivars. Different pre processing methods were applied to the raw expression data from the arrays, and clustering methods were used to try and differentiate the genetically modified cultivars from the conventional cultivars. Results showed that more variation existed between different strains of conventional cultivars than between conventional and genetically modified cultivars. For more information, please see: Cheng, K.C., Beaulieu, J., Iquira, E., Belzile, F.J., Fortin, M.G. and StrÃ¶mvik, M.V. (2008). âEffect of transgenes on global gene expression in soybean is within the natural range of variation of their conventional counterparts.â Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (in press) Experiment Overall Design: Five samples (biological replicates) of total RNA from each of the five different soybean varieties were selected for hybridization to Affymetrix Soybean GeneChips, for a total of 25 chips (following total RNA integrity assessment). Spike controls B2, bio-B, bio-C, bio-D and Cre-x were added to each hybridization cocktail. Arrays were washed and stained in an Affymetrix Fluidics Station prior to scanning on the Affymetrix GeneChip Scanner 3000. Image acquisition and processing was done with the Affymetrix Microarray Analysis Suite 5.0.

Project description:While many types of genetically modified (GM) food have become more available worldwide, the acceptance of GM food continues to be low. To increase this acceptance, various educational interventions have been conducted; however, conflicts remain about the safety and acceptability of GM food among laypeople, experts, and policymakers in several countries. Thus, this study aimed to clarify whether basic biology education influences Japanese people’s acceptance of GM food. We examined this idea by comparing individual experiences of high school biology education based on curriculum and proficiency level. We distributed online questionnaires to 1,594 people in Japan; 1,122 valid responses (70.4%) were obtained. Results showed that the acceptance rates of GM vegetables, fish, and meat were 33.6%, 29.0%, and 29.1%, respectively. Comparing the biology knowledge test scores according to different high school biology education levels (i.e., non-learners, basic, and advanced levels) showed no significant differences between the three age groups (20s, 30s, and 40s), which corresponded to different curricula (p = 0.90); however, there were significant differences between the high school biology education levels (p<0.01). Using logistic regression analysis, we then examined the effect of high school biology education on acceptance of GM food. The results showed no significant differences between different high school biology education levels but significantly lower acceptance by the 30s and 40s groups compared with the 20s group (p<0.05). This suggests that basic biology education alone is not sufficient to change people’s attitudes toward GM foods. These generational differences suggest factors other than high school biology curriculum affect different generations’ acceptance of GM foods. Overall, high school biology education did not directly affect acceptance of GM foods, although those who received a higher level of education had an increased knowledge of GM foods.

Dataset Information

Information and order of information effects on consumers' acceptance and valuation for genetically modified edamame soybean.

Publications

Information and order of information effects on consumers' acceptance and valuation for genetically modified edamame soybean.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets