New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science abstracts
Consumer perceptions of fruit production technologies
NICOLA RICHARDSON-HARMAN*
TRACEY PHELPS
PAULENE MOONEY
ROD BALL
The Horticulture and Food Research
Institute of New Zealand Ltd
Private Bag 92 169
Auckland, New Zealand
*Present address: 122 Summit Hall Road, Gaithersburg, Maryland,
20877, United States.
email: nharman@aol.com
Abstract New Zealand consumer perceptions of risks and
benefits of fruit production technologies were measured using a self-completion
questionnaire survey. The fruit production methods tested included genetic
engineering, chemical fertilisers, chemical pesticides, organic farming, and
irradiation. The 511 respondents varied in age and locality (rural and city).
In general, there was much consistency in the perceptions held by respondents;
the benefits of genetic engineering in fruit production were perceived to
outweigh the risks to both consumers and the environment but the use of both
pesticides and irradiation in fruit production were considered to be
unacceptably risky techniques with few associated benefits.
Keywords consumer; fruit; transgenic; pesticide; irradiation;
fertiliser; breeding; organic
H98003
Received 20 January 1998; accepted 13 May 1998
PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (927K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)
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