Domestically produced food: Consumer perceptions of origin, safety and the issue of trust

It is becoming increasingly difficult for the public to attempt to assess risks using traditional methods such as smell, taste or other physical attributes of food. The existence of extrinsic cues such as the country of origin (COO) of food can help to make food purchase decisions easier for consumers. However, the use of extrinsic cues depends heavily on the extent to which consumers trust such signals to be indicative of quality or safety, which in turn depends on the credibility behind that cue. This paper aims to examine consumers association of domestically produced food with increased food safety standards and the association of COO and food safety information with socio-demographics and other aspects of consumer psychology such as attitudes, risk perception and trust. Using an ordered probit model, domestic production is examined as an extrinsic cue for food safety by looking at the relationship with trust in food safety information provided by national food standards agencies (NFSAs) and other socio-demographic characteristics, based on nationally representative data from 2725 face-to-face interviews across five European countries. Results suggest that domestic production of food is an extrinsic cue for food safety and as consumers place increasing importance on food safety they are more interested in food produced in their own country. This, coupled with consumer trust in a strong, and independent national food standards agency, suggests the potential exists for the increased consumption of domestically produced foods.     

Consumer trust, risk and food safety: A review

Consumers' attitudes to trust and risk are key issues in food safety research and attention needs to be focused on clearly defining a framework for analysing consumer behaviour in these terms. In order to achieve this, a detailed review of the recent literature surrounding risk, trust and the relationship between the two must be conducted. This paper aims to collate the current social sciences literature in the fields of food safety, trust and risk. It provides an insight into the economic and other modelling procedures available to measure consumers' attitudes to risk and trust in food safety and specifically notes the need for future research to concentrate on examining risk and trust as inter-related variables rather than two distinct, mutually exclusive concepts. A framework is proposed which it is hoped will assist in devising more effective research to support risk communication to consumers.     

加强镇江市水产品质量安全管理的思考

水产品质量安全问题已成为全社会关注的热点和焦点。近年来,镇江市加快了水产品质量安全建设步伐,并取得了初步成效,也积累了一定的经验。本文从水产生产特点出发,分析了影响水产品质量安全的主要因素,并针对现状,从构建水产品质量安全管理体系、明确水产品质量安全管理重点和规范水产品质量安全管理行为等三方面,提出了加强镇江市水产品质量安全建设和管理的应对措施。     

Cost implications of improving food safety in the Dutch dairy chain

This paper examines control measures for improving food safetyin the dairy chain, using an integer linear programming model.The chain includes feed (compound feed production and delivery),farm (dairy farm) and dairy processing (transport and processingof raw milk, delivery of pasteurised milk) blocks. Results showthat 65 per cent of the maximum possible food safety improvementcan be achieved at relatively low extra cost per ton of milk(4.27), fairly evenly distributed across the blocks. Highersafety levels can be attained by increasing the farm block'scontribution, but at much higher extra cost (44.37 for the maximumattainable).     

Sustainable entrepreneurship: regional innovation cultures in the ecological food sector

How do regional innovation cultures in the eco-food sector develop? And how can they be supported and empowered within a national strategy for sustainable agriculture? Based on three case studies, this paper explores key characteristics and dynamics of ongoing regional innovation cultures within the ecological food sector in Norway. The common denominator of each case is a strong community of innovative practitioners that shape their activities around intentional interaction, dialogue and inquiry with a long term commitment. They sustain and develop common tasks by uniting individual commitment to shared questions. Thereby, the intensity and ecology of the shared questions build the carrying capacity and structure of the innovation culture. Each case is unique by being rooted in personal incentives and shared ownership to tasks. Structurally their uniqueness demonstrates three modes of activity and roots of identity, related to the three concepts of institutional entrepreneurship, market entrepreneurship and cultural entrepreneurship. Four implications are finally drawn for regional innovation strategies within the eco-food sector: (1) build strategies on the activity of pioneering local/regional cultures of practice; (2) analyse their entrepreneurial uniqueness and social ecology; (3) facilitate a broader entwining of institutional, market and cultural entrepreneurship; and (4) develop competency and cultures of inquiry linked to entwined entrepreneurship. A corresponding research strategy should acknowledge, build on and strengthen the culture of inquiry embedded in the regional communities of practice.     

新西兰水产品安全立法研究

新西兰食品安全立法包括议会基本法、总督或食品安全部长发布的次级立法以及三级立法。食品标准属于部长发布的次级立法。《1981年食品法》和《1999年动物产品法》规定了基于HACCP原则的食品安全计划、风险管理计划、管控方案等多项法律制度和措施。必须按照初级产业部制定的管控方案从事双壳贝类养殖和渔船上的水产品有限加工,并应遵守最小化污染物和变质原则,以及接受第三方的外部核查制度。建议以HACCP理论为指导,完善我国水产品安全立法,重构食品标准体系,扶持水产品认证机构发展,提高国际竞争力,依法建立透明的水产品质量可追溯体系。     

An Empirical Examination of the Role of Trust in Consumer and Supplier Relationship of Little Direct Contact: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

In view of the growing interest in consumer trust, this article examines the determinants and consequence of trust in the relationship between business and consumers with little direct contact. By using structural equation modelling, a framework of consumer trust was developed, and the effect of trust and its determinants was assessed. The findings suggest that provision of trust information, integrity, and benevolence are crucial in building up trust, whereas competence affects trust building indirectly through the provision of trust information. Consumer trust was confirmed to have a positive effect on the consumer's intention for future purchase. Within the limitations of the study, the implications of these results are discussed and further research is suggested.     

论当前形势下食品抽检监测与食品安全

当前食品安全事关人们的身体健康,食品抽检监测质量与食品安全问题已经引发全社会的关注和重视.本文主要讨论了当前形势下抽检监测对于食品安全的重要意义.针对我国存在的食品安全主要问题展开分析,针对现存问题采取科学、有序的食品抽检监测措施,为保障人们的生命安全和健康做出积极贡献.     

Changes in land requirements for food in the Philippines: A historical analysis

Land for food production is limited. We investigate how land demand for food develops as populations grow, diets change and agricultural practices become more intensive. The Philippines provide an excellent case: during the 20th century population grew tenfold implying similar increases in basic dietary needs. To quantify occurring changes, we link average dietary patterns to their arable land requirements. For this, we utilize data on population, dietary patterns and crop yields from 1910 to 2003. While average per capita food supply improved during the century, the amount of land required to feed a person declined, albeit not continuous: it was at about 2500 m² in 1910, at 2000 m² in 1960, at 1000 m² in 1985, and did not change greatly since then. Accounting for population growth, this translates to a fourfold increase in total land required for food from 1910 to 2003. When investigating what drove the observed developments at national level, we find that in the first half of 20th century population growth was linked to increased land requirements, before strong increases in yields were enabling constant land requirements for about two decades. Recently, the combined effect of dietary change and population growth led again to increased land requirements for food. Different yield developments in individual crops caused shifts in the relative land requirements of different food items. Our findings suggest that developments in land requirements for food and underlying factors are often non-linear. Caution is warranted when discussing futures of global food supply, based on assumptions of linear or continuous trends.