I don't know if I personally agree. I don't know how my car works or computer works, but I don't make assumptions that people are trying to trick me (too badly) when I buy them.
I feel like this is a place where it's really science that fails. After all, the truth of the matter is, many "side effects" of small molecule drugs just means, "It interacts with other enzymes/proteins, and we aren't too sure which. But it's not enough to hurt you that bad, mostly." You go off a set-up like that -- and of course, you're going to be afraid of GMOs! It sounds terrifying, something from a drug you take once when you already feel ill -- to a drug you take EVERY day.
But people don't understand they're entirely different. And because so many of the places that regulate drugs also regulate food -- of COURSE they would assume they aren't! Why would you? Who told you they are, huh?
A small molecule, like most drugs, is put under a completely different set of tests than anything that would be in a plant. You WANT small molecules to stay active in your body. Something you eat? you WANT destroyed. Totally different tests. These things in the plant aren't small molecuels -- they're HUGE proteins -- which your tummy specifically evolved to break completely apart, because you eat them literally every time you eat anything that's alive! And unlike small molecules, proteins are made out of repeating patterns, they link up exactly the same way, in everything from a bacteria, to a plant, to a mammal. The links are always, and have always, been shown to be the same; that's why your body made an organ in your body that can so easily break them apart, into something you can absorb.
Yes -- there has been the case of prions, but that is one of the things people look into extensively when looking at these things. Will your stomach break up this protein? Yes! Does it break it down into the small amino acids we assume? Can it be digested by ALL digestive enzymes? Now -- when you put this protein into a plant, what other proteins start showing up? Which ones disappear? Which proteins are they, if there are any? (Since, usually, if there are -- you already consider it a failure and wouldn't keep going into this too much, but you DO want to answer these questions so that you can avoid such an event in the future).
People only have big pharma to look at, when they look at this, and let's be honest -- big pharma has done some pretty bad stuff. The scientific community has COMPLETELY failed in explaining how these set ups, testing, and systems are not at ALL like one another, and go by completely different criteria and standards. Instead, people are left comparing it to the one thing they DID have explained a little growing up -- and jeeze, does it not look good, huh?
Sorry about the rant. I just always feel more needs to be put on scientists; I watch everyone in my field purposely use huge, confusing terms to normal people, because they'd forgotten what it was like to not even know what DNA is. I'm lucky -- my husband is an engineer and doesn't know biology, but loves to listen to be explain things to him, so I have more practice with it. But so, so many scientists, rather than taking the time to explain it more simply -- just go, "Well, they don't work with it, who cares!" and that attitude always upsets me.