Evenson, Robert E. and Terri Raney, Editors. The Political Economy of Genetically Modified Foods.

Evenson, Robert E. and Terri Raney, Editors. The Political Economy of Genetically Modified Foods. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd., 2007, 485 pp., 112.50 [pounds sterling].

This book is a compilation of previously published papers, many from previously published compilations of papers, on various topics related to genetically modified foods. Like most such volumes, a valuable service is provided by bringing the papers together in one source and reducing search costs for readers interested in the topic. Unfortunately, readers anticipating a political economy discussion of GMO issues will find very little in this book. While the opening section provides copies of letters on both sides of the debate over relevance of the FAO 2003-4 State of Agriculture and Food (SOFA) report entitled "Agricultural Biotechnology: Meeting the Needs of the Poor," there is no synthesis or analysis by the editors or additional papers that might put these letters in a broader political economy context.

Having said that, there are some good papers in the volume and a reader interested in evolution of genetically modified food science and industry will find it useful. The book is divided into ten sections, each of which focuses on a particular aspect of genetically modified foods. As already mentioned, the first section includes reprints of an open letter criticizing the FAO 2003-04 State of Agriculture Report (list of signatories not included), a response letter from Jacques Diouf (Director General of FAO), and an open letter in support of the report (list of signatories included). The crux of the debate is whether the FAO report adequately addressed how GMOs impact smallholder farmers and hunger in developing countries. A final paper in this section (Paarlberg, Hopkins, and Ladewski) details three controversies limiting development of regulatory standards for GM crops and provides several suggestions for moving the debate forward.

The focus of Section II is the technology behind GM foods. The first paper (Ruttan) provides a history of how the biotechnology science of plant breeding and industry structure has evolved. The following two papers (Jung; Dreher et al.) provide detailed discussions of GM technology. The focus of the Jung paper is molecular genome analysis and transgenic plants. The second paper compares costs of conventional plant breeding with costs of market-assisted selection in maize.

Section III includes two papers with a focus on evolution and evaluation of the industry. Evenson provides a history of agricultural biotechnology and linkages to economic performance through acceptance by the farm production sector and consumer response. The paper by Pray and Naseem focuses on agricultural biotechnology research, publicly and privately funded, and concludes that research in the field has been concentrated in the private sector of industrialized countries.

Only one paper is included in Section IV (Farmer Adoption)--a reprint of Chapter 3 from the FAO report referenced in Section I. The focus is shifting of technology research development from the public sector (dominant in the Green Revolution) to the private sector (dominant in the Gene Revolution).

Consumer acceptance is the theme of Section V, which contains four papers reprinted from an earlier edited volume on the topic. Parcell and Kalaitzandonakes evaluate response in CBOT soybean futures prices to announcements of bans on GM food products by leading food companies and conclude that there is little impact. Huffman et al. use experimental auctions to compare welfare effects of mandatory versus voluntary labeling of GM-products for U.S. consumers. They do not find evidence to suggest that a mandatory policy would help consumers distinguish between GM and non-GM foods. The final two papers (Wolf, Bertolini, and Parker-Garcia; Bonny) examine consumer attitudes towards GM foods. Wolf, Bertolini, and Parker-Garcia compare consumers in Italy with those in the United States and find that, although awareness of GM food is higher in the United States, a majority of consumers in both countries would rank mandatory labeling as very important. Bonny compares perceptions of consumers in France with those in other EU countries and concludes that changing the negative perceptions of either group towards GM foods appears unlikely.

Similar to Section IV aforementioned, Section VI (Health and Environmental Effects) contains only one paper--a reprint of a chapter from the FAO 2003-4 State of Agriculture and Food (SOFA) report. Included is a discussion of relevant standard-setting bodies and a summary of current scientific knowledge on potential risks.

Three papers are included in Section VII (Evolving Regulatory Structure)--all are reprinted from a single previous edited volume. Zepeda compares regulatory and labeling policies in the United States and EU. Hobbs et al. also compare different regulatory approaches being applied to agricultural biotechnology and include a discussion of WTO guidelines related to GM foods. Heumueller and Josling focus specifically on the WTO TBT Agreement. They relate specific provisions of the agreement to labeling regulations.

GM Free Markets are the subject of the three papers in Section VIII. All empirically evaluate welfare impacts from segmenting food markets into GM and GM-free. Burton et al. examine world canola markets whereas Schmitz, Moss, and Schmitz look specifically at soybean markets in the United States. In the first case, net welfare effects are indeterminate depending on who bears the cost of identity preservation. In the second case, results are further complicated by influence of U.S. farm programs. In the third paper, Dhar and Foltz estimate consumer benefits from labeling organic and rBST milk in the United States and find increased value from added competition and expanded choice sets when markets are segmented.

In Section IX the first paper reprints another chapter from the FAO report with a focus on Economic Impacts. There are four additional papers in this section from two previously edited volumes. Jarvis evaluates economic impacts from adoption of rBST in world dairy industries and finds that, while moderate reductions in production costs might be anticipated in developed countries, profits would not be increased in developing countries where other production and technology conditions limit upside yield potential. Smyth and Phillips focus on costs associated with incomplete scientific information. Tothova and Oehmke develop a theoretical framework for analyzing why countries have divided into different regulatory "clubs": pro-GM and anti-GM. Anderson, Nielsen, and Robinson use the GTAP model to evaluate welfare gains from a subset of countries adopting GMO technology.

The last section, X, includes three papers focused on GM Products for Developing Countries. Evenson compares two ways that developing countries access GM technology. In a "genes for rent" approach, technology is provided by a private company for a technology fee. The "transgenic breeding" approach depends on technology development through National Agricultural Research Systems. The final two papers are further chapters reprinted from the FAO 2003-4 State of Agriculture

Report. The first focuses on research and research policy as it relates to developing countries while the second focuses on FAO capacity a building efforts for developing countries.

Overall this volume provides an introduction to many issues related to the science and technology of GM foods. Readers who have kept up with literature in the area will likely find too much repetition, both within the book and with earlier material. Readers new to the topic will find a nice overview of GM issues.

Suzanne Thornsbury

Michigan State University

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