Japanese consumers more concerned by GE livestock than vegetables SHARES The study also found that the way in which the topic of gene editing is presented to consumers can have an impact on their response. The study found that consumers were less likely to raise concerns with gene editing when shown pictures of cartoon pigs Credit: Hisashi Urashima A statistically rigorous survey of Japanese consumers has found that they have more negative opinions about the use of new gene editing techniques on livestock than they do about use of the same technologies on vegetables. The survey findings were reported in the journal BMC CABI Agriculture and Bioscience at the end of last March.