This 2008 survey found that nearly half (46%) of U.S. adults worry about getting sick from contaminated food and avoid certain foods because of safety warnings. Nearly a fourth of consumers (23%) say they are “not at all” or “not too” confident of that the food they eat is safe.

This survey asked consumers about their attitudes toward food safety and found:

• 76% are confident that the food they buy is safe to eat, while 23% are not.
• 69% are confident in the government’s ability to keep the food supply safe, while 30% are not.
• In the previous 6 months, because of warnings about the safety of particular types of food, 46% have worried they might get sick from eating contaminated food, 46% have avoided buying foods they would normally buy, 29% have thrown out food they would normally buy, 29% have thrown out food earlier than usual, and 14% have returned food to the store.
• 46% are worried that somebody in the family might get sick from eating fresh tomatoes or other produce, while 53% are not worried.
• 45% are less likely to eat fresh produce as the result of recent food borne illnesses, while 55% are not.
• With stricter federal safety standards for meat in place, 80% would support establishing stricter standards for fresh produce, while 17% would oppose.
• 86% support labeling produce to track its origin in the event of an outbreak of illness, while 12% are opposed.
• 41% are confident that the U.S. government has an adequate number of inspectors to check the safety of food imports into the U.S., while 56% are not confident.
• 49% are confident that the U.S. government has an adequate number of food inspectors to check the safety of food being grown and packed in the U.S., while 48% are not.
• If it is decided that additional food safety inspectors are needed, 70% feel that the growing and packing industry should be responsible for the additional costs, while 23% feel it should be the taxpayers and 7% don’t know.