Consumer perceptions of precision breeding Appendices: polling questionnaire

Ask all. 

QPB1. In general, how trustworthy or untrustworthy would you say these groups are?

Single code per row, progressive grid. 

Rows - randomise but keep 1 to 2 as a block in that order (scientists codes)

1.    Scientists in general
2.    Scientists advising the UK government on topics relating to food  FIX AFTER 1
3.    Civil servants  
4.    Politicians 
5.    Regulators (for example, OFCOM, OFGEM, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Food Standards Agency (FSA))
6.    Farmers
7.    Food manufacturers
8.    The ordinary person in the street 

Scale - Forward and reverse scale

1.    Very trustworthy
2.    Fairly trustworthy
3.    Neither trustworthy nor untrustworthy 
4.    Fairly untrustworthy
5.    Very untrustworthy
6.    Don’t Know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB2. How concerned, if at all, are you personally about the following issues:  

Single code per row, progressive grid. 

Rows - randomise

1.    Climate change 
2.    Food availability/food shortages
3.    Animal welfare standards in the UK
4.    Food safety/ hygiene standards in the UK 
5.    The impact of the food you eat on the environment  

Scale - Forward and reverse scale rows 1 to 4

1.    Highly concerned
2.    Somewhat concerned 
3.    Not very concerned 
4.    Not at all concerned 
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB3. Which, if any, of the following applies to you? Please state all that apply.

Multicode randomise rows 1 to 7

1.    Vegetarian [INFO BUTTON: a person who does not eat meat or fish] 
2.    Pescatarian [INFO BUTTON: a person who does not eat meat but does eat fish]
3.    Vegan [INFO BUTTON: a person who does not eat or use animal products]
4.    Mainly vegetarian but occasionally eat meat
5.    Avoid certain foods due to food allergies, intolerances and/or coeliac disease 
6.    Avoid certain foods due to following a Halal, Kosher or other religious diet   
7.    Avoid certain foods because of how they have been produced (e.g., avoid battery farmed eggs, non-organic certified foods)  
8.    None [FIX SINGLE CODE ONLY]
9.    Don’t know or prefer not to say [FIX SINGLE CODE ONLY]

Ask all. 

QPB4. The following questions ask about your household’s personal situation.  

Please say whether the statement below was often true, sometimes true or never true for you/people in your household in the last 12 months. 

Single code per row, progressive grid. 

Rows - randomise

1.    I/We worried whether our food would run out before we had money to buy more. 
2.    The food that we bought just didn’t last, and I/We didn’t have money to get more. 
3.    I/We couldn’t afford to eat balanced meals. 
4.    I/someone in my household had to cut the size of meals or skip meals because there wasn’t enough money for food  
5.    I/someone in my household had to use a food bank / received a free food parcel  

Scale - Forward and reverse scale rows 1 to 3

1.    Often true  
2.    Sometimes true  
3.    Never true  
4.    Don’t know or prefer not to say [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB5. How much, if at all, do you personally agree or disagree with the following statement: I like to try unfamiliar foods?

Single code, forward and reverse scale 1 to 5. 

1.    Strongly agree
2.    Tend to agree
3.    Neither agree nor disagree
4.    Tend to disagree
5.    Strongly disagree
6.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB6. Have you heard of precision breeding before?

Single code, forward and reverse scale 1 to 3. 

1.    Yes, and I know what it is
2.    Yes, but I don’t know what it is
3.    No, I have not heard of it

Ask all. 

(new screen)
Sample 1

“Precision Breeding” means a range of a scientific techniques that make changes to a plant or animal that could have happened naturally through cross-breeding, but can now be made to happen more quickly or more predictably. This might be for many reasons but some examples of why this is done might be to make things more resistant to disease, need less water to grow, or to increase the nutritional content.

(new screen)
Sample 2

“Precision Breeding” means a range of a scientific techniques that make changes to a plant or animal that could have happened naturally through cross-breeding, but can now be made to happen more quickly or more predictably. This might be for many reasons but some examples of why this is done might be to make things more resistant to disease, need less water to grow, or to increase the nutritional content.
Precision Bred foods would only be allowed to be sold in the UK after being independently scientifically assessed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and other UK government bodies to make sure that they are safe to eat. In Scotland, Food Standards Scotland has the responsibility for assessing certain food and animal feed products which require authorisation before sale. 

Ask all. 

QPB9. Do you think that precision bred food products should, or should not, be available for sale in the UK in the future?

Single code, forward and reverse scale 1 to 4.

1.    Yes –they definitely should be available for sale in the UK in the future
2.    Yes –they probably should be available for sale in the UK in the future
3.    No – they probably should not be available for sale in the UK in the future
4.    No – they definitely should not be available for sale in the UK in the future
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB12. To what extent do you think that precision bred food products are safe, or not safe, to eat?

Single code, forward and reverse scale 1 to 4.

1.    Very safe to eat
2.    Fairly safe to eat
3.    Fairly unsafe to eat
4.    Very unsafe to eat
5.    Don't know [FIX]

Ask to Sample 1 only. 

QPB17. Precision Bred foods would only be allowed to be sold in the UK after being independently scientifically assessed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and other UK government bodies to make sure that they are safe to eat. In Scotland, Food Standards Scotland has the responsibility for assessing certain food and animal feed products which require authorisation before sale.

Knowing this, how confident are you that…

Progressive grid single code per row.

Rows - randomise rows. 

1… the food you currently buy in the UK is safe to eat?
2. … if precision bred food became available to buy in the UK, it would be safe to eat? 

Forward/Reverse scale 1 to 4. 

1.    Very confident
2.    Fairly confident
3.    Not very confident
4.    Not at all confident
5.    Don’t know / Don’t know enough to say

Ask to sample 2 only. 

QPB17. Given what you know about how food is regulated in the UK, how confident are you that ..

Progressive grid single code per row.

Rows - randomise rows. 

1… the food you currently buy in the UK is safe to eat?
2. … if precision bred food became available to buy in the UK, it would be safe to eat? 

Forward/Reverse scale 1 to 4. 

1.    Very confident
2.    Fairly confident
3.    Not very confident
4.    Not at all confident
5.    Don’t know / Don’t know enough to say

Ask all. 

QPB10. How acceptable or unacceptable, do you think it is to use the following in food production:

Progressive grid single code per row.

Rows - fix order.

1.    Precision breeding of plants
2.    Precision breeding of animals 

Scale - Forward/Reverse scale 1 to 5.

1.    Very acceptable
2.    Fairly acceptable
3.    Neither acceptable nor unacceptable
4.    Fairly unacceptable
5.    Very unacceptable
6.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB11.  If precision bred food products became available for sale in the UK, what do you think the impact might be on the following? 

Progressive grid single code per row.

Rows - rotate order. 

1.    On the welfare of animals bred using precision breeding techniques
2.    The health of people eating precision bred food products
3.    On the environment
4.    On small-scale farmers if they cannot access precision breeding technology
5.    How precision bred food tastes
6.    How nutritious precision bred food products are 
7.    The affordability of food

Scale - Forward/Reverse scale 1 to 5.

1.    Very positive
2.    Somewhat positive
3.    Neither positive nor negative
4.    Somewhat negative
5.    Very negative
6.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB11a. Thinking about precision bred food, please put these issues in the order that they are the most important to you, where 1 is the most important and 6 is the least important.

Rank from most important to least important, rotate order. 

1.    Animal welfare
2.    Health and nutrition
3.    The environment
4.    Small scale farmers
5.    Taste
6.    Affordability

Ask all. 

QPB13. How important, if at all, would it be for you to know if you were buying a food item that had been precision bred, or contains precision bred ingredients, before you buy it?

Single code, forward and reverse scale 1 to 4. 

1.    Very important
2.    Fairly important
3.    Not very important
4.    Not all important
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB14. When shopping for food, how important would it be to you, to have the following information about precision bred foods?

Progressive grid single code per row.

Rows - Randomise but keep 1 to 2 as a block in that order (ingredients) 

1.    That a food product contains something precision bred, but not which specific ingredients are precision bred 
2.    Which specific ingredients in a food product are precision bred FIX AFTER 1
3.    The reason for the precision breeding (for example, increased resistance to disease or drought; larger crop yields)
4.    Any changes in nutritional content (for example, levels of vitamins and minerals, or fibre) as a result of the precision breeding 
5.    Any information relevant to people with allergies, who are pregnant or have other health conditions 

Scale, forward and reverse scale 1 to 4. 

1.    Very important
2.    Fairly important
3.    Not very important
4.    Not at all important
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all.

QPB15. If Precision Bred food products became available for sale in the UK, would you or would you not be willing to eat…?

Progressive grid single code per row. Randomise rows.

Rows. 

1.    Precision bred meat
2.    Precision bred dairy products (for example, milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter, etc)
3.    Precision bred cereals/grains/flour 
4.    Processed foods that have been precision bred (for example, bread or chocolate)
5.    Precision bred fruit or vegetables

Scale. 

1.    Yes – I definitely would be willing to eat it
2.    Yes – I probably would be willing to eat it
3.    No – I probably would not be willing to eat it
4.    No – I definitely would not be willing to eat it
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB16. If Precision Bred food products became available for sale in the UK, would you eat a product if you knew…?

Progressive grid single code per row. Randomise rows.

Rows.

1.    It had health benefits (for example, increased vitamins and nutrients)
2.    It was safer for people with food allergies, intolerances, and coeliac disease 
3.    It tasted better than food that had not been precision bred 
4.    It was cheaper than food that had not been precision bred 
5.    It was better for the environment than food that had not been precision bred 
6.    It had been precision bred to be more resilient to changing climates
7.    It had been precision bred to improve animal welfare

Scale, forward and reverse scale 1 to 4. 

1.    Yes – I definitely would be willing to eat that food product
2.    Yes – I probably would be willing to eat that food product
3.    No – I probably would not be willing to eat that food product
4.    No – I definitely would not be willing to eat that food product
5.    Don’t know [FIX]

Ask all. 

QPB8. Before today, how much, if anything, did you know about precision breeding?

Single code.

Scale- Forward/Reverse 1 to 5. 

1.    A great deal 
2.    A fair amount 
3.    Just a little 
4.    Heard of it but knew nothing about it 
5.    Had never heard of it 
6.    Don’t know