Public Attitudes towards Agricultural Biotechnology in Developing Countries: A Comparison between Mexico and the Philippines

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to portray the views on agricultural biotechnology expressed by the political stakeholders involved in the public debates in developing countries. The empirical part is based on two surveys conducted in Mexico and the Philippines. The study shows that most of the respondents to the surveys consider biotechnology a powerful new tool to address problems in agriculture, nutrition and the environment, and they do not seem to share Europe’s fear of potential health risks for consumers. In turn, they are concerned about corporate control of the technology, and the potential impact of such crops on their countries ’ rich biological diversity