Interesting Results from Michigan State Univ. Survey

An Apr. 4, 2022 article by Holly Whetstone titled “Inflation, pandemic, war reflect consumers’ wariness on grocery prices” presents major results from a Michigan State Univ. (MSU) poll that was conducted to assess the concerns of 2,052 Americans regarding food and food prices. As you might guess, this poll was conducted to determine how the survey respondents feel about increasing grocery prices and their effect on household food budgets, food choices, and the food supply chain.

The following narrative will dwell on two of the highlights from the survey.

•    “Half (49%) of the respondents say they never or rarely seek information about where their food was grown or how it was produced.”

Isn’t this odd? In today’s world of heightened concern about GMO- vs. non-GMO-sourced foods, this survey indicates that half of food purchasers and consumers are not concerned if their food is grown in the U.S. where there are very strict guidelines for the safe production of food, or in other countries and regions where guidelines for the safe production of food are not nearly as strict as those in the U.S., or are even non-existent.

•    “45% of the respondents did not know that all food contains genes.”

This statistic really opened my eyes. It is dismaying that these results indicate that nearly half of the U.S. population is unaware that all food and food sources contain genes, which are components of all living matter. Why aren’t they learning this basic biological tenet at some point in their education journey?

We in agriculture must somehow heighten the importance of basic biological teachings in our schools so that U.S. consumers are aware of the importance of where food is produced, how and under what conditions it is produced, how genetics control the quality and nutritional value of food and food products, and why all of this is even more important as food prices increase and consumers look for alternative food products that may be cheaper. After all, the content of what is consumed by humans is a major factor in their health and well-being.

Composed by Larry G. Heatherly, Apr. 2022, larryh91746@gmail.com