Genetically modified foods, manipulated to improve their nutritional properties, are part of the second generation of biotechnological developments applied to agriculture. These new products are being developed with the aim of improving consumers' quality of life, by preventing certain diseases and providing proven physiological effects.
Research is currently underway to develop cultures with new profiles of lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and other micro-constituents. Genetic manipulation is also aimed at eliminating certain undesirable or anti-nutritive compounds.
Genetically modified functional foods are thus obtained by cloning useful nutritional genes which are then transferred to deficient crops. These crops and foods are not yet available on the market. They should appear on grocery store shelves within the next ten years.
Option consommateurswhich closely follows the debate on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), decided to investigate the issue of genetically modified functional foods through a research project.
More specifically, Option consommateurs carried out a study whose main objective was to gain an insight into the difficulties that the marketing of genetically modified functional foods will entail. A review of the literature on the subject, interviews with experts and a focus group with consumers identified some of the key issues surrounding this new food category.
Indeed, there are currently no specific guidelines for the evaluation of genetically modified functional foods, nor any monitoring methods that could be put in place following their commercialization. What's more, we still know very little about the effects of foods on the health of populations, which makes it difficult and complex to formulate scientifically valid health claims on the labels of these products.
Finally, Canada does not yet have a labelling and traceability system for genetically modified foods and crops, even though such control is essential to inform consumers of their presence on the market.
