Better than antibiotics. Public understandings of risk, human health and the use of synthetically obtained livestock vaccines in five European countries
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Standard
Better than antibiotics. Public understandings of risk, human health and the use of synthetically obtained livestock vaccines in five European countries. / Ditlevsen, Kia; Glerup, Cecilie; Sandoe, Peter; Lassen, Jesper.
In: Health, Risk & Society, Vol. 23, No. 5-6, 2021, p. 196-216.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Harvard
APA
Vancouver
Author
Bibtex
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
T1 - Better than antibiotics. Public understandings of risk, human health and the use of synthetically obtained livestock vaccines in five European countries
AU - Ditlevsen, Kia
AU - Glerup, Cecilie
AU - Sandoe, Peter
AU - Lassen, Jesper
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Drawing upon data collected within 20 focus groups with consumers from five European countries, in this article we investigate how perceptions of human health risk and current anxieties regarding agricultural food production affect citizens' acceptance of the use of an emerging biotechnology, synthetic biology, in the development of vaccines for animals bred for food production. In focus group discussions in Austria, the UK, Poland and Denmark, participants tended to value the positive potential of synthetic vaccines if they could solve existing problems. Participants argued that the technology could be beneficial for animal welfare and was a potential solution to the problem of risks to human health posed by the use of antibiotics on livestock. The perceived drawbacks of antibiotic use affected the discussions towards acceptance of synthetic biology and the use of vaccines in meat production despite concerns over the potential risks. The participants from Spain stood out in that their acceptance of the synthetic vaccine appeared to be disconnected from concerns about risks related to the use of antibiotics. Participants from all countries found the vaccine to have potential uses, but also expressed concerns about health risks for consumers. In general consumers were perceived as those bearing the heaviest burden of risk, while pharmaceutical companies were perceived as likely to benefit most from production of the vaccine. We found that institutional trust and national contexts of (dis)engagement with science influenced the participants' understandings of the degree to which the synthetic livestock vaccine had a fair risk-benefit balance.
AB - Drawing upon data collected within 20 focus groups with consumers from five European countries, in this article we investigate how perceptions of human health risk and current anxieties regarding agricultural food production affect citizens' acceptance of the use of an emerging biotechnology, synthetic biology, in the development of vaccines for animals bred for food production. In focus group discussions in Austria, the UK, Poland and Denmark, participants tended to value the positive potential of synthetic vaccines if they could solve existing problems. Participants argued that the technology could be beneficial for animal welfare and was a potential solution to the problem of risks to human health posed by the use of antibiotics on livestock. The perceived drawbacks of antibiotic use affected the discussions towards acceptance of synthetic biology and the use of vaccines in meat production despite concerns over the potential risks. The participants from Spain stood out in that their acceptance of the synthetic vaccine appeared to be disconnected from concerns about risks related to the use of antibiotics. Participants from all countries found the vaccine to have potential uses, but also expressed concerns about health risks for consumers. In general consumers were perceived as those bearing the heaviest burden of risk, while pharmaceutical companies were perceived as likely to benefit most from production of the vaccine. We found that institutional trust and national contexts of (dis)engagement with science influenced the participants' understandings of the degree to which the synthetic livestock vaccine had a fair risk-benefit balance.
KW - risk
KW - public understandings of risk
KW - human health risk
KW - biotechnology
KW - synthetic biology
KW - agricultural vaccines
KW - FOOD
KW - TECHNOLOGIES
KW - DISCOURSES
KW - ATTITUDES
KW - CONSUMERS
U2 - 10.1080/13698575.2021.1948507
DO - 10.1080/13698575.2021.1948507
M3 - Journal article
VL - 23
SP - 196
EP - 216
JO - Health, Risk and Society
JF - Health, Risk and Society
SN - 1369-8575
IS - 5-6
ER -
ID: 275379887