Basic biology education in high school and acceptance of genetically modified food in Japan

While many types of genetically modified (GM) food have become more available worldwide, the acceptance of GM food continues to be low. To increase this acceptance, various educational interventions have been conducted; however, conflicts remain about the safety and acceptability of GM food among laypeople, experts, and policymakers in several countries. Thus, this study aimed to clarify whether basic biology education influences Japanese people’s acceptance of GM food. We examined this idea by comparing individual experiences of high school biology education based on curriculum and proficiency level. We distributed online questionnaires to 1,594 people in Japan; 1,122 valid responses (70.4%) were obtained. Results showed that the acceptance rates of GM vegetables, fish, and meat were 33.6%, 29.0%, and 29.1%, respectively. Comparing the biology knowledge test scores according to different high school biology education levels (i.e., non-learners, basic, and advanced levels) showed no significant differences between the three age groups (20s, 30s, and 40s), which corresponded to different curricula (p = 0.90); however, there were significant differences between the high school biology education levels (p<0.01). Using logistic regression analysis, we then examined the effect of high school biology education on acceptance of GM food. The results showed no significant differences between different high school biology education levels but significantly lower acceptance by the 30s and 40s groups compared with the 20s group (p<0.05). This suggests that basic biology education alone is not sufficient to change people’s attitudes toward GM foods. These generational differences suggest factors other than high school biology curriculum affect different generations’ acceptance of GM foods. Overall, high school biology education did not directly affect acceptance of GM foods, although those who received a higher level of education had an increased knowledge of GM foods.