CONSUMER FOOD SAFETY CONCERNS AND INTEREST IN PESTICIDE-RELATED INFORMATION

Consumer food safety concerns and interest in pesticide related information was measured by personal interviews with 479 consumers in 14 counties in California. Although concern about pesticide safety was noted by almost half of the respondents, nutritional considerations had the greatest impact on food selection criteria. Of those who volunteered pesticide safety concerns, 15% indicated they sought organic produce and 13% said they avoided or reduced produce purchases. In addition to information about the human health effects of pesticide use, consumers expressed high interest in the environmental effects of pesticide use. Consumers currently use television and newspapers as information sources and prefer these to other sources.