In Italy and France, genetically modified foods are the subject of intense public debate -- and the feelings of most of the public are negative. Speaking last month in Tokyo, Italian sociologist of science Massimiano Bucchi attributed public resistance to GM foods in these countries to the central role that food plays in their cultures. GM foods are also fiercely resisted in Britain, maybe because there are more pressure groups there (surely, said Bucchi, it can't be because the British love their food).
In other words, the French and the Italians love their food, but the British love to kick up a stink.
There is less of a stink over GM foods in Japan, although there is arguably more of a reason to make one. Akira Iritani, at Kinki University in Osaka, announced at the beginning of the year that he had made pigs carrying a gene from spinach. If confirmed (the work is unpublished), it would be the first time that an animal has been made containing a gene from a plant. Iritani claims that the FAD2 gene from spinach converts saturated fat into unsaturated fat (linoleic acid). Bacon from such pigs would, according to Iritani, contain 20 percent less saturated fat than bacon from normal pigs.