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TONY BINKS

Executive chef, Caledonian Hotel, Edinburgh

Caters for 800 covers daily in 150-seat Carriages restaurant, 70-seat Pompadour restaurant and nine function suites

"We have got beautiful raw and natural produce available to us - there is simply no need for alternatives. If we start playing around with new produce, our young people will never know what the basics are.

"It would be naive of me to say that I would never use new varieties. My farmer grows purple and orange cauliflowers and black cabbages, but I don't think they taste like the real thing. Some new varieties can be stunning to look at - like the Chinese ornamental cabbages. The only time I would use them is as a display on the buffet table."

MADDALENA BONINO

Head chef, Bertorelli's Café Italian,Charlotte Street, London

140-seat restaurant serving 500 covers daily

"I am not at all comfortable about eating food that has been genetically manipulated.

"As a chef it is much more fun and exciting to react to food as it comes into season. Our bodies know when we need certain foods. We don't need so many root vegetables in summer - they are needed when we need to lay more fat down during a cold winter. So why mess about with nature to make them available all year round?

"I would rather use parsnips that are different sizes and aubergines that are different colours, rather than those that have been technically altered to make them all exactly the same size and colour.

"I am worried that increased technology in food may be detrimental to its nutritional content. The further food is removed from nature, the more homogenised it becomes. It is sad that pressure is put on the consumer through advertising to accept these homogenised foods. It is so difficult to get children to eat real food after being brought up on bland baby foods in jars and packets."

MARK GREGORY

Executive chef, Brocket Hall, Welwyn, Hertfordshire

Caters for up to 150 covers at golf course and up to 130 covers at Brocket Hall

"I am concerned as both a chef and a father that we don't know what the long-term side effects are of eating food that has been genetically manipulated.

"Any kind of technology that changes the molecular structure of food to prolong the shelf life is not natural. I am wary about tampering with nature. I understand the commercial aspects of it, but we need to be very wary about creating problems for ourselves in the future.

"It worries me that it appears people are now suffering from more dietary ailments than ever before, and that the increase in heart disease is contributed to diet. It makes you wonder about the possible connection between these illnesses and the way we mess about with our food.

"I would choose not to buy genetically manipulated food, but it could be a difficult choice for chefs working in hospitals or schools where they are working to a strict budget."