Communicating about emerging food risks with the public
Climate change is driving the emergence of new food safety risks, but current risk communication strategies are not adequately tailored to inform and influence consumer behavior regarding these emerging risks.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with consumers in Europe to understand people’s priorities for risk communication in relation to emerging food safety risks, and to understand if this differed from their preferences and priorities for communication about established risks.
It was concluded that emerging food safety risk communication needs to be developed and implemented to engage citizens in developing protective behaviours in relation to emerging food safety risks if specific behavioural changes are needed. At the same time, communication about adaptive and mitigatory actions is needed to reduce the impacts of emerging food safety risks associated with climate change.
The results were that communication campaigns can leverage motivational elements, such as positive framing, relevant narratives, and co-benefits including health and economic savings, to support behaviour adoption and sustained risk mitigation. Risk communication must be aligned with these behavioural drives, particularly for vulnerable populations such as children, pregnant women, and the elderly, who are more exposed to (emerging) food safety issues.
Proactive, transparent communication based on behavioural insights ensures that both individuals and organisations are better prepared to navigate the evolving landscape of food safety risks in a changing climate.
Future-Proofing Food: Transforming Risk Analysis for a better and more adaptive food system
Ongoing | 2022-2026
- Main funding source
- Horizon Europe (EU Research and Innovation Programme)
- Geographical location
- Netherlands, Italy, Hungary, Greece, Austria, France, Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, Austria, United Kingdom