63% of U.S. Consumers Support Voluntary GMO Policies

Jun 03, 2014

By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com

A new study suggests that 63% of Americans support the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s existing voluntary policy for labeling genetically modified (GM) foods.

Interestingly, the 63% figure is consistent with survey results from previous years.

The survey which was conducted by the International Food Information Council Foundation also found that consumers generally had positive perceptions of GM foods. Specifically, GM foods that offer additional nutritional benefits. The study also found that consumers overall confidence in the safety of U.S. food supply to be strong at 67%.

Comparatively, only one percent of the survey participants said that biotechnology is something that they avoid when purchasing food. A small percentage 4% of respondents identified biotech as something they want information about on their food labels.

Sparingly, a sizable majority of Americans said that they have favorable perceptions about modern agriculture practices. Percentage wise, 73% viewed modern agriculture as sustainable and 71% said that it produces nutritional food.

The survey was conducted between March 28 and April 7, 2014, and the sample size was 1000 participants.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.