Nearly half of European consumers don’t trust food system, EIT Food study flags

07 Apr 2022 --- The latest results of the EIT Food Trust Report surveying 20,326 consumers across 18 European countries reveal that less than half (48%) trust food manufacturers and authorities while only a third believe the food they eat is sustainable.

The report was conducted to measure trust in the food system and confidence in food products. It shows that while 76% of Europeans say they are motivated to live a sustainable life only 51% take sustainability into account when making food choices. 

This indicates that there is a gap between consumers wanting to make choices that protect the planet, and actually make impactful lifestyle changes – known as the “attitude-behavior gap”. 

Saskia Nuijten, director, communication and public engagement, EIT Food tells FoodIngredientsFirst: “The report found that confidence in food actors is determined by several factors, including the motives of these actors and whether they are represented by people.” 

“Consumers tended to trust people rather than anonymous organizations and felt more trusting of organizations led by goals other than financial incentives.”

Another barrier against consumer trust is a lack of knowledge, she points out. “For instance, most Europeans are hesitant about adopting new foods because they don’t know how these benefit them and want reassurance about the long-term health impacts of consuming these foods.” 

Measuring consumer trust levelsEuropean consumers trust in farmers is at an all time high.
The report includes data from the EIT Food TrustTracker 2021, a peer-reviewed tool for measuring consumer trust, alongside a qualitative study of the in-depth views of individuals across Europe. 

The study was conducted by a consortium of pan-European academic partners including the University of Reading, the European Food Information Council (EUFIC), Aarhus University, KU Leuven and the University of Warsaw. 

“Consumers want to see more transparency from food manufacturers. They are wary of greenwashing and feel that the labels manufacturers create are too complex for the average consumer to understand,” explains Nuijten.

About 47% of Europeans have confidence in the integrity of food products. While the report shows that just 48% of consumers state that they trust food manufacturers and authorities, more than a quarter say they actively mistrust them. 

Only a third of the experiment group believes that manufacturers are open or honest about their role in the food system, pointing to a lack of transparency as the root of the distrust. Transparency and engagement from food authorities is also an issue with 39% of citizens believing they are open.

Retailers hold greater public trust, with 54% of consumers stating they trust retailers in terms of their competency, openness and care. Trust in farmers is the highest of any group in the food industry, with 67% of consumers expressing trust. Trust in these groups have remained steady year-on-year, EIT reports. 

“Consumers value transparency and small, local farms are considered the most trustworthy out of this group as people can see for themselves how they work. Consumers generally trust retailers to bring safe foods to the market, and have been encouraged by positive initiatives from retailers such as giving free fruits to children and adding more vegan products to their ranges, says Nuijten.

Trust in new foodsMore than a third of consumers want to make more sustainable food choices.
When it comes to new innovations in food products, 37% of Europeans are open to adopting new foods, but the majority of Europeans are hesitant – indicating that the food system has more to do in promoting trust in food innovation. 

“Trust in food innovation can be improved by connecting consumers with food innovators and entrepreneurs to enable co-creation,” says Nuijten. 

EIT Food helps make these connections through its EIT Food Consumer Trust Grand Challenge project which provides platforms for dialogue between consumers and other food system stakeholders such as food companies, industry bodies, non-governmental organizations, regulatory authorities, policymakers and the media. 

“Projects like this allow us to come up with solutions to challenges such as the complexity of current food packaging labels,” she says.

The organization supports a number of start-ups working to increase food supply chain transparency, for instance through advancing innovation in digital traceability. EIT Food RisingFoodStar Connecting Food has created a digital platform that can follow a food product in real-time, tracking and digitally auditing each batch of products as they go through the supply chain.

The EIT Food TRACOD project provides an example of how this kind of innovation is being applied to a specific sector of the food industry via its fish monitoring system. The system combines spectrometer readings, deep learning and artificial intelligence to monitor and authenticate the quality, freshness and nutritional value of fish products. It then generates a database of information that can then be communicated to producers and consumers via a mobile app.

Dr. Anna Macready, associate professor at University of Reading adds: “The food system must be transformed if we are to succeed in ensuring it can deliver healthy, sustainable food for all. 

“We cannot achieve this without bringing consumers into the heart of this journey, so that they can trust that the food they eat is both good for them, and for the planet. As we develop the innovations and technologies needed to future-proof the food system, we must do more to engage with consumers directly, supporting them to make the right decisions that lead to a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle,” Macready explains. 

 By Inga de Jong