Consumer perceptions of the safety, health and environmental impact of food supply chains

The US based Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture has published a survey of consumer attitudes to food safety, local food and climate change.

The study objectives were to gauge consumer perceptions regarding:

• Food safety
• The impact that various scales and production methods of the food system have on greenhouse gas emissions
• Willingness to pay for a food system that achieves a net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
• Health benefits from local and organic foods

Survey respondents placed high importance on food safety, freshness (harvest date), and pesticide use on fresh produce they purchase, with somewhat lower importance placed on whether the produce was locally grown, the level of greenhouse gas emissions it took to produce and transport the produce, and whether the respondent could contact the farmer who grew it.