Outsourced PR specialists and corporate communicators for food companies are going to be devoting more time and resources to damage control and reputation management if a new survey holds true, according to CMF&Z Public Relations, Des Moines. Among consumers' chief concerns today are food safety.
The study, which was co-sponsored by the Industry Council on Food Safety, shows that 52 percent of consumers believe food safety is a more important consumer issue than it was a year ago. The telephone survey was conducted in April and May of this year - 150 editors (from papers nationwide and with circulations varying from under 25,000 to more than 100,000) were questioned and 150 members of the public were also tapped for insight.
The surge in interest, the probe points out, is linked to food safety scares about E. coli, salmonella and food handling and preparation. Based on the survey, it's likely that your media relations expertise is going to weigh in as a heavy contributor when it comes to these issues. Consider these two findings:
- 67 percent of editors queried believe food safety is a more important issue than it was a year ago; and
- Mad cow disease cited by only 3 percent of the respondents as a high-priority concern, compared with 33 percent in the 1996 survey when the disease received a lot of media coverage. (CMF&Z, 515/246-3500)