The research report from HealthFocus International—Global Shopper Views on GMOs—explored the topic of genetic modification on a global scale across 16 key countries.
Shoppers globally ranked GMOs within the top 5 food concerns—even surpassing things like artificial ingredients, sugar and sodium in some countries. The majority of shoppers who are aware of GMOs perceive them as less healthy and less safe than non-GMO foods with 87% saying that non-GMO foods are somewhat or a lot healthier than GMO foods. Shoppers seem to believe that GMOs play a more negative role when it comes to health and safety rather than environmental impact or other concerns such as taste. The majority of global shoppers do not believe that genetic modification of crops is necessary to ensure that we can grow enough food globally. The survey also found that 48% of global shoppers are extremely or very concerned about GMOs and 87% believe GM foods should be labeled as such.
