Beneficial Biotechnology or Pandora’s Box? Farmer’s Perspectives on Gene Editing in Livestock Agriculture in Bavaria

• In Event: Agrifood Futures in-the-Making: Part IV

Abstract

The emergence of CRISPR-Cas9 has recently rendered the large-scale genetic modification of livestock animals such as cows, pigs and chickens possible. Novel editing targets range from genes that curb disease vulnerabilities, increase muscle mass or convey hornlessness to the development of transgenic pigs for medical use. These new avenues for the genetic modification of livestock animals raises questions of how different publics, including farmers, will evaluate these new developments. In this paper, we draw on qualitative interviews with small- to medium-scale farmers in Bavaria in which we discussed the possible scenarios for using on CRISPR-Cas9 in livestock agriculture. We found that, beyond simply embracing or rejecting these possibilities, the farmers engaged in complex and situated evaluations of CRISPR-Cas9 that foregrounded the specific socio-economic conditions of contemporary small- and medium-scale agriculture in Bavaria as well as ongoing political negotiations about value attributed to farming, farmers and their products in society. The study points to the importance of exploring how distinct issue-publics evaluate the potential and pitfalls of CRISPR-Cas9 in the context of their specific lifeworld. It thereby emphasizes the need for future studies in multiple contexts and of diverse publics.

Authors

• Julia Feiler, Technical University Munich (TUM)

• Amy Louise Clare, MCTS, Technical University of Munich

• Ruth Müller, MCTS TU München