Hearts & Minds: Rehabilitation of GM shows the value of playing the long game

How times change. A little more than two decades ago, biotech companies were struggling to get themselves appreciated as purveyors of GM crops.

Terrifying warnings appeared about ‘Frankenstein foods’ accompanied by lurid claims as to the associated health risks. Even securing any sort of fair hearing for them proved difficult. They were merchants of doom, intent on upsetting the planet’s delicate eco-system and destroying our natural world.

Roll forward, and GM products are to be coveted, to be nurtured and secured, in Britain anyway. Negotiators in the UK-EU trade deal are discussing this very topic, with the Brits arguing against EU attempts to curtail this miraculous technology.

There is no doubt that the debate has calmed down at least in the UK, which is not so agricultural dependent. The passage of time can do this in comms - remember the scares about mobile phones and how they were predicted to cause brain tumours or microwaves and the harm they were bound to inflict?

There may be more going on here, another shift that helps the GM corner. While the public has become more relaxed about the benefits, there has also been a hardening in attitude towards the EU itself. Back then, a joint stance against GM between the UK and EU would have been popularly lauded. Now, the difference between the two presents an opportunity for a favourite British pastime that has only grown in currency and shows no sign of abating, thanks to the rise of Nigel Farage, namely bashing the bloc.

What is the message here? If your company is involved in something that is at first perceived as scary and provides tabloid fodder, generating sensational headlines, do not necessarily rush to engage in an aggressive, fierce, loud tit-for-tat exercise, that could get you nowhere. It may backfire and merely serve to keep the controversy going. Instead, consider remaining calm and pushing back in a firm, authoritative manner. Quietly and determinedly, make your case. Some of it will sink in. Meanwhile, let the item take hold and gain acceptance. It is not easy - the temptation is to fight fire with fire - and takes a while but GM and others show playing a long game can achieve the desired outcome.

Better still, is if you attract political support. That might not reflect love for what you’re doing and be down to political expediency, but it all helps.

Chris Blackhurst is one of the UK’s foremost business journalists. He was previously Editor of The Independent and City Editor of the Evening Standard.