Earlier this year, first-year genetics student and former Wanaka farmer Steve Anderson was told by Dunedin-based New Zealand Genomics Ltd it would be willing to map his DNA.
However, after exploring the issue further, the company decided not to.
Chief executive Tony Lough said the decision was made at a board meeting last week, where, after consulting researchers and legal experts, it was decided the company would not offer genome sequencing to members of the public because of ethical concerns.
This was largely because the company did not have the resources to guide consumers through the process in a clinical setting.
"Let's say [from your DNA sequence] you somehow figure out you may have a predisposition to some disease that you have never heard about ... the first thing you are going to do is panic."
To prevent panic, people would need to be "paired off" with someone qualified and the company did not have the resources to do this.
However, Mr Lough said Mr Anderson had raised important issues which needed to be discussed, as it was likely genome sequencing would become part of the public health system in the near future.
He said he had perhaps been guilty of getting Mr Anderson's hopes up, but thought the right decision had been made in the end.
"[We] probably should have been more definitive," he said.
Mr Anderson, who had hoped his DNA sequence would give him a greater understanding of how his body would age, said the change of heart left him "very disappointed".
He was " not angry" with the company, but said the Government needed to get the legal and ethical framework in place so people like him could access their genomes.
Through DNA sequencing, people could find out if they were susceptible to disorders such as type 2 diabetes.
He suggested it had the potential to bring "huge" health and financial benefits to the country.
He had not given up on his dream of having his genome mapped in New Zealand.
In an effort to move the issue forward, he would send a letter to Prime Minister John Key.
