Consumers are Questioning Food Safety

Cartoon: Walt Handelsman: Newsday

According to a new IBM study, only 20% of the country believes that their food is safe. The study reveals that the majority of consumers no longer feel that the food industry is no longer developing or selling food products that are safe of healthy.

The multiple high-profile recalls over the past few months have also made their impact: 83% of those surveyed said they could name a recalled food. Peanut butter was the most recognizable recalled food with 46%.

Even with the C.O.O.L program in place, 76% wanted more information on the origin of their food. This increased caution and awareness from consumers have lead them to change their buying habits; 63% of the survey participants reported changing their habits to access fresher or higher quality foods- even in the poor economy.

PR Newswire has more:

The survey found that over the past two years, consumer appetite for information about food products increased. 77 percent of consumers want more information about the content of the food products they purchase, and 76 percent would like more information about its origin. 74 percent are willing to dig deeper and seek more data about how the food products are grown, processed and manufactured. Despite industry efforts to keep consumers informed with more detailed product information, there's still a significant gap between consumer expectations and what retailers/manufacturers are providing.

What is changing in food safety to keep up with these demands? The LA Times has an article detailing and criticizing the just-cleared-for-a-senate-vote Food Safety Enhancement Act:

The objective of safeguarding consumers would be more effectively met if the bill didn't perpetuate the existing system of splitting oversight among multiple agencies. Most notably, the Department of Agriculture -- which receives 80% of the food safety funding, although it's responsible for just 20% of the nation's food -- would continue to oversee meat and eggs. Combining the missions under one agency would make better organizational sense and provide more flexibility for spending regulatory dollars where they are most needed.

You can read more about the act at the Examiner.com.

Further Reading

More on the IBM survey via Media Post
Food Safety for Warehousing via Authorstream
Food Distributors and Safety via DMA Online
A review on the new movie Food, INC, via the NY Times

May contain nuts. And salmonella.

Hundreds of people have already become sick and three people may have died as the result of widely distributed tainted peanut butter. Everything from snack foods to pet food is being taken off the shelf, and the FDA is encouraging consumers to check their pantries to ensure that they will not be affected by the outbreak.

While King Nut started this round of recalls, other companies have lined up to issue their own. As of today 125 different foods are on the recall list. MSNBC has a breakdown of what is being recalled, and the FDA has set up a page where you can search by UPC, brand name, or description.

If you have purchased bulk peanut butter from a distributor, The Examiner has some lot numbers for you to check on:

The peanut butter being recalled is sold by the company in bulk to distributors to the food service industry. Peanut Corporation of America notified it’s customers by telephone and in writing, according to a company press release.

Lot numbers of the recalled product are 8193, 8194, 8197, 8233, 8234, 8235, 8241, 8255, 8256, 8275, 8276, 8282, 8283, 8284, 8296, 8316, 8330, 8331, 8336, 8345, 8354. Packages range in size from five to 50 pounds.

Further Reading:

Hershey and ConAgra not part of peanut investigation via Reuters
Girl Scout Cookies are not affected by recall via KAIT 8 News
The peanut recall expands via the Wall Street Journal
Worried consumers toss peanut products via MSNBC
Peanut Butter sales are holding according to Kentucky.com