Technical-scientific controversies: transgenic foods in the perception of teachers and students of IFNMG, Januária campus

Abstract

The cultivation and commercialization of GMOs for human and animal nutrition in the last decades has been a matter of great relevance in the food scenario. The use of these biotechnologies has generated much controversy in the political and academic environments and an extensive discussion of their possible impacts on health, the environment and the economy should be carried out, involving society, the academic community and the various instances of government. In this context, we sought to understand, through the research, how students and teachers of the IFNMG bachelor degree course in agronomy, campus Januária position themselves in relation to the risks, controversies and uncertainties of seed development and the production of transgenic foods? Therefore, a descriptive and exploratory research with qualitative approach was performed. For data collection, semi-structured interviews, focus groups and document analysis were used as instruments. Survey data revealed that issues involving GMOs still generate great doubts and expectations among the surveyed public. In general, teachers and students have shown insecurity about the risks and benefits attributed to GMOs, especially those intended for human consumption. Moreover, it was noticed that there is a mismatch between the proposal of formation of the agronomy course and the students' desire regarding the controversial themes presented in the research. The research results also contributed to a greater understanding of the perception that teachers and students of the IFNMG campus Januária agronomy course have on the cultivation, commercialization and consumption of GMOs in Brazil, as well as highlighting how the theme of GMOs is addressed in the course. agronomy and discussions about agronomist training today.

Keywords: Transgenic. Scratchs. Food production. Biotechnology.