Japanese Consumers Valuation of Genetically Modified Functional Foods

: Recent food safety scares have increased Japanese consumers concerns for food safety and Genetically Modified (GM) foods as they perceive the uncertainty associated with GM foods as potential risk. However, this risk perception can be considerably reduced as the consumers observe or experience the benefits of GM foods directly. Technical advancement in GM food development and manufacturing has led to the emergence of GM functional foods that provide physiological benefits or reduce the risk of chronic diseases, above and beyond their basic nutritional functions. This paper examines Japanese consumers preference for the functional benefits of the new generation GM food products. The relative price premium associated with each functional benefit of GM foods indicates that the respondents place the highest importance on the health-related benefits such as the nutritional, medical and dietary benefits, while placing less importance on convenience and the producer benefit (i.e., lower pesticide usage). These findings have important policy and marketing implications as they help the stakeholders such as GM food researchers, marketers and policymakers in deciding which attributes and functional benefits are required to develop and enhance in their new products during the research and development phase as well as in the regulatory policy making process.