PERCEPTION OF EUROPE ON FOOD SAFETY

The Directorate- General Health and Consumer Protection and the European Food Safety Authority commissioned a survey to assess how people in the EU perceive risk, focusing in particular on food safety, an area of shared interest that is published in February 2006.
The survey was conducted in the twenty-five Member States of the European Union by way of face-to-face interviews in peoples' homes in their national language between September 2 and October 6, 2005. The methodology used is that of the Standard Eurobarometer polls managed by the Directorate-General Press and Communication (unit "Opinion polls, press reviews, Europe Direct").

Readers are reminded that survey results are estimations, the accuracy of which depends upon the sample size and the observed percentages. Furthermore, it should be borne in mind that a survey frames issues in a particular way and respondents are restricted to answering the questions in terms of the response options given.

1. Risk perceptions

Q.I will read out a list of potential risks. For each of them please tell me how likely you think they are to happen to you personally.

The survey on risk issues reveals that a significant proportion of EU citizens - two out of five - think that their health could be damaged by the food they eat.

Q. When thinking about food, what words first come to mind? (Multiple Answers Possible)

Nonetheless, the thought of food generally has positive connotations for Europeans. Consumers spontaneously associate it first and foremost with taste and pleasure while the association of food with health is made by only one person in five.

Q. When you go shopping for food, what would you say are the most important factors that influence your choice? (Max 2 answers)

When purchasing food, quality (42%) and price (40%) emerge as the key factors influencing consumers' choice. "Health" per se is not their primary preoccupation with respect to food and does not appear to be the most important factor in guiding consumers' food choices.

Q. What are all the things that come to your mind when thinking about possible problems or risks associated with food? (Multiple answers possible)

Although when prompted, 42% of Europeans consider it likely that the food they eat will damage their health, the survey shows that when people are asked to specifically cite any problems or risks associated with food, many things spontaneously come to mind but without any sense of unanimity.
Food poisoning comes to mind most often (16%), followed by chemicals (14%) and obesity (13%). For 7% of respondents food does not present any risks or problems at
all.

Q. For each of the following issues, please tell me if you are very worried, fairly worried, not very worried or not all very worried by it?

However, when consumers are reminded of the possible risks associated with food (through the presentation of a closed list of potential issues), concerns appear to be quite widespread.

In order to better distinguish between levels of concern, an "average index" of opinions was constructed by transforming the "worry scale" into numerical values (The average index was calculated by attributing +100 to "very worried" responses, +67 to "fairly worried", +33 to "not very worried" and 0 for "not at all worried" responses. The "don't know" responses were omitted from this calculation.)

On the basis of question measuring whether people are worried about 14 potential risks related to food, for each individual country, the tables below identify the potential risks and the answers of "worried" for the top concerns in each member state.

Pesticide residues in fruit, vegetables or cereals come out on top in as many as nine Member States, notably the Mediterranean countries (Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain), France and Germany as well as two of the new Member States (Hungary and Slovenia) and finally Finland.
An equally high proportion of Greeks (87%) express their concern for residues in meats like antibiotics or hormones as that observed for pesticide residues. Their Cypriot neighbours are of the same view with 88% declaring that they are worried about such contaminants, as do two in three Belgians.
In spite of the fact that fieldwork fell prior to the dectection of the cases of avian influenza in Europe, this risk is of more concern in Malta, Latvia and the Netherlands than any of the potential risks covered in this question.
Contamination by bacteria like salmonella in eggs seems to be the most widespread concern for citizens in the Czech Republic, Luxembourg and Slovakia, with over seven in ten declaring that they are worried.
The risk of unhygenic conditions in food handling outside the home corresponds to the highest level of worry in Ireland, the UK, Denmark, Poland and Spain.
Additives like colours, preservatives or flavourings used in food or drinks are of most concern in two of the Baltic States.
Close to seven in ten Austrians convey their concern about the use of genetically modified products in food or drinks.
The welfare of farmed animals is the greatest source of worry for Danes and Swedes.
Finally, it would seem that the discovery of dioxin in chickens in Belgium in 1999 remains present in the minds of its citizens with two in three declaring that they are worried about pollutants like mercury or dioxins.
The analysis shows that there is a profile of worriers. One third of the population demonstrated a pattern of being "very worried". Women and people with a lower level of education tend to be over-represented in this category. At the other end of the scale, the "not very worried" group accounts for one fifth of the population.

2. Views on public authorities' action

Q. For each of the following items (including food safety), have you ever heard about any European Union regulations?

In terms of food safety policies, the survey shows that 61% of EU citizens have heard about EU regulations on food safety. In terms of education, the results show a 20 percentage point gap in awareness levels between people who left school by the age of 15 (51%) and those who stayed in full-time education until the age of 20 or older (71%).

Q. For each of the following statements, would you say that you totally agree, tend to agree, tend to disagree, totally disagree?

 

Moving on to citizens' evaluations of public authorities' action with regard to issues associated with food, 58% are confident that public authorities account for the most recent scientific evidence in taking decisions regarding food risk and one in two praises public authorities for their work in informing citizens about food-related risks.

Q. For each of the following statements, would you say that you totally agree, tend to agree, tend to disagree, totally disagree?

While 62% of EU citizens agree that food safety laws in the EU are strict, some reservations emerge regarding their enforcement, with only 46% who consider that this is properly done.

Overall, nearly half the consumers surveyed agree that public authorities in the EU are doing enough with respect to food safety risks, while one third would like to see them do more. Men, young respondents and students stand out in their respective categories for their comparatively higher levels of overall satisfaction with public authority action in terms of food safety risks.

Q. Would you say that usually public authorities' actions in the European Union with regards to food safety risks?

Q4. Compared to ten years ago, would you say that, overall, food safety has improved, stayed about the same or has gotten worse?

Public opinion on the evolution of food safety over the last ten years is divided: 38% consider that it has improved, 29% feel that it has stayed about the same and 28% believe that we are now worse off. People who believe the latter are mostly those who also have the most pessimistic opinion on risks in the area of food safety.

3. Sources of information

Q.Please tell me how recently you have heard or seen something in the media about the following health risks.

When it comes to assessing sources of information, it appears that media reports on food safety reach a vast majority of citizens with most of those surveyed recalling that they had seen or read something in the media over the past 6 months.

Q Please tell me how you reacted to the last story you heard about a type of food being unsafe or bad for your health.

Respondents who indicated that they came across something in the media on a certain type of food being unsafe or unhealthy were then asked how they reacted to the last story they heard about

People who generally tend to worry more about health risks associated with food are far more likely to state that they changed their behaviour after hearing stories about unsafe or unhealthy food than those who tend to worry less. As the table below shows, 22% of people classified as being "very worried" declare to have permanently changed their eating habits, compared to only 8% of people classified as being "not very worried". Among this latter group, 36% claim to have ignored the story, compared to only 12% of people who are "very worried".

Q. Suppose a serious food risk were found in fish or chicken. Who would you trust the most to inform you about this risk? (Max two answers)

Finally, the survey shows that consumer groups, physicians or doctors, and scientists, are the most trusted sources when it comes to providing information about food risks, followed by public authorities. The media generates a fairly low level of trust while, as found in other consumer research, economic operators (manufacturers, farmers and retailers) are cited as being amongst the least trusted sources.

Reference
http://www.bfr.bund.de/cm/221/risk_issues_executive_summary_on_food_safety.pdf

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