Australia farmers unconvinced on GM foods - survey
Date: 17-Sep-99
Country: AUSTRALIA
Australia's farmers, who produce A$22 billion a year worth of
agricultural exports - a sizeable chunk of the world's traded bulk food
- are uncertain whether the claimed financial benefits of genetically
modified (GM) crops will outweigh extra production costs of GM seeds and
other inputs, the survey shows.
The survey, by Rural Press Ltd , publisher of The Land, Queensland
Country Life and other titles, showed 41 percent of respondents did not
know if costs outweighed benefits on GM crops.
This was the majority view for all states excluding New South Wales,
where 42 percent of farmer respondents believe that the extra production
costs will most likely outweigh the benefits, The Land said in its
latest issue yesterday.
Australia-wide, only 26.5 percent of farmers believe the benefits of GM
crops would outweigh the costs, The Land said.
In contrast, 32.5 percent believe the costs will outweigh the benefits.
"Farmers have no such doubts about the labelling issue, however," The
Land said.
"A staggering 90 percent want foods containing GM ingredients to be
labelled so consumers can avoid them if they wish," it said.
Only five percent believe that labels are a waste of money and that GM
foods are not any different from other foods, the survey showed.
The view was fairly uniform across Australia, with support for labelling
ranging from 87 percent in Victoria to 94 percent in Tasmania.
The Rural Press telephone survey polled 800 farmers across the country.
The majority of respondents grow wheat (76 percent), barley (53
percent), canola (30 percent) and oats (29 percent).
Australia presently produces only two GM crops, cotton and carnations.
Producers are seeking approvals to introduce other GM crops.
