A majority of European consumers underestimate the extent to which the global food industry must increase its production in order keep pace with demand, according to the findings of research published today.
A survey conducted by YouGov on behalf of the European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) revealed that only 4% of respondents correctly estimated that the supply of food must increase by 60% before 2050 in order to match increases in the global population. That figure is based on estimations by the Food and Agriculture Organization.
ECPA said that consumers in the UK, Germany, Spain and Poland also “misunderstood” the link between productivity and food prices; less than one third of those surveyed agreed that inability to protect crops against diseases and infestations was a factor directly linked to the increasing cost of the world’s food supply.
“If farmers cannot protect their crops, cost will inevitably increase,” said Graeme Taylor, a spokesperson for the pesticides industry, at an event on the future of European farming where the survey results were released.
“Consumers expect – and deserve – to have access to safe and affordable food of good quality. To continue to be able to produce sufficient quantities of quality crops requires sustainable use of pesticides. This research shows however that consumers do not appreciate the magnitude of what is at stake if farmers don’t have access to innovative solutions like pesticides to protect their crops.”
Many country-level results also revealed misperceptions, ECPA said. In Poland, 30% of adults disagreed that pesticides are designed to protect plants from damage by harmful bugs, invasive weeds, parasites and fungi. When asked what percentage of global crop yields they think are currently lost to plant pests and diseases each year, only 12% of respondents in the UK correctly identify the correct figure, which is 40%.
ECPA said it would launch an initiative aimed at engaging society in a conversation about the role pesticides play in food production and addressing the negative preconceptions that exist around the issue, as a consequence of the findings.
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