October 13, 2000

The American people believe that hunger and malnutrition are more urgent global problems than disease, pollution and global warming, according to a new poll released today at the World Food Prize awards in Des Moines, Iowa. According to the survey of 1,000 adults, conducted for the Alliance for Better Foods, hunger and malnutrition are considered an urgent problem by 75% of American adults, compared with the 68% who feel disease and epidemics are urgent problems; 66% for pollution and environmental damage, and 43% for global warming.

By a margin of more than two to one -- 69% to 26% -- Americans support the use of biotechnology in food and agriculture and nearly three out of every four adults, 71%, believe biotechnology can help resolve problems of world hunger and malnutrition.

C. Manly Molpus, president and CEO of the Grocery Manufacturers of America, a founding member of the Alliance for Better Foods, said the poll "demonstrates that Americans are more concerned than ever about feeding the world's growing population and that the benefits of biotechnology are being increasingly recognized as important tool in meeting the food challenges of the 21st century."

When asked about several approaches to solving the problem of world hunger and malnutrition, 86% of respondents said that training more people to grow their own food would make a big, or some, contribution; 72% said distributing surplus grain to poor countries and international charities would help; 71% said using biotechnology to develop crops that are more productive or grow in harsh conditions would be of benefit and 46% saw the value of increasing U.S. government aid to poor countries.

The poll also found strong support for the use of biotechnology in a variety of agricultural applications: 80% support using biotechnology to make foods more nutritious; 81% support using biotechnology to develop crops requiring fewer chemicals; 81% support using biotechnology to develop crops that need less land and water; 82% support using biotechnology to develop trees that grow faster; 75% support biotechnology to develop foods that stay fresh longer and 71% support biotechnology to develop foods containing natural vaccines.

Conducted by KRC Research & Consulting, the survey consisted of a random sample of 1,000 adults in the United States. Interviews were conducted between Sept.15 and Sept.18, and the results have an estimated margin of error of plus or minus 3.1% for proportions near 50%. The full survey is available on the Alliance for Better Foods Web site at http://www.betterfoods.org.

The Alliance for Better Foods represents diverse agriculture and food related groups, including farmers, processors, distributors and retailers; scientists and food technologists; and professionals in other fields dedicated to improving nutrition, protecting the environment and fighting world hunger. The Alliance supports biotechnology and the significant benefits it offers to consumers and to those that produce and process foods, and is committed to helping people understand those benefits as well as the safety of using biotechnology in foods.