By Yiqian Ma
Floridians rank the importance of food safety behind only the economy and health care, according to a new study from the UF/IFAS Center for Public Issues Education.
In the online public opinions survey surrounding food-related issues in Florida, 85 percent of respondents said food safety was highly or extremely important. Floridians in the study ranked food safety third out of 15 identified issues, followed by food production practices at No. 9 and genetically modified food at No. 14. PIE Center researchers developed the 15-item index to track trends on how Floridians rank the importance of the issues over time.
Nearly three-quarters of respondents, 74 percent, said food production practices were highly or extremely important, compared with 57 percent who felt the same about genetically modified foods.
The way respondents ranked the food-related issues in the index surprised Joy Rumble, the PIE Center researcher who led the study. Rumble is an assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.
“They’re really concerned about food safety. That was a really important issue for them,” she said. “Although GMOs seem like a big deal in the media, when compared to the 15 issues, respondents are ranking GMOs toward the bottom.”
Previous topics covered by the PIE Center’s public opinion surveys, such as water quality and quantity, immigration reform and endangered species, were also listed as important issues. Water quality and supply followed food safety, with 84 percent of respondents saying it was highly or extremely important. Immigration and endangered species both fell toward the bottom of the list, with 59 percent and 55 percent of respondents, respectively, rating them highly or extremely important.
Tracy Irani, director of PIE Center, indicated that the importance of issues, particularly that of food safety, was based on its significance to consumers’ lives.
“Food is personally relevant to folks,” she said. “It’s one of those things we care about and have more emotion and concern about than other kinds of issues in agriculture and natural resources.”
That relevance doesn’t necessarily translate into correct perceptions, Irani noted, adding that PIE Center researchers uncovered “more knowledge gaps than any of the other public opinion surveys we’ve done.”
