RISK COMMUNICATIONS
You've Got a Story to Tell
By David Morris

One of the big challenges facing all producers is to maintain public confidence in the safety of their food supply...so says Dr. Doug Powell of the University of Guelph. Concerns about food are constantly before us in the media, including mad cow disease, hamburger disease, and genetically altered foods. Consumers are naturally skeptical of anything that appears to tamper with nature, especially if the direct benefit to them is not clear. When that skepticism is combined with their distrust of big companies and doubts about the effectiveness of governmental regulatory or health protection agencies, a crisis in confidence can quickly evolve into a panic. And panic leads to poor decision making.

Powell says farmers have an important role to play in helping to restore public confidence. Of all those who have a vested interest in agriculture, farmers still have the best credibility with the general public – consumers continue listening and trusting in what producers say. But to maintain the privilege of using modern technology, such as pesticides and the products of biotechnology, farmers will have to work actively to inform the public about its benefits.

Although Powell is on the faculty of the Plant Agriculture Department, his area of research is outside that which you would normally associate with field crops or horticulture. Unlike his colleagues who do technological or biological studies, Powell’s emphasis is on communications and risk management. Much of his research is devoted to communication issues related to microbial food safety in the fruit and vegetable industry. For example, he is working with several commodity organizations to develop on-farm programs for protecting food quality and safety. He and his associates also maintain FSnet, Agnet and AnimalNet, e-mail-based information services that provide daily updates about news and events related to issues in food safety, plant agriculture and animal agriculture.

Doug has always been interested in science and communications and how they relate to one another. A native of Brantford, he has a close connection to the farm through relatives in the Alliston-Cookstown area that helped shape his interest in agriculture. As a student at Guelph during the 1980s, Powell studied genetics, but also spent a lot of time working on the student newspaper and this interest in journalism led to several years of work with the press following graduation. In 1993, he returned to Guelph to pursue graduate work in the Department of Food Science, hoping to explore some aspect of the interface between agricultural science and society. Three weeks after starting his graduate work, he was still looking for the right topic when, in his words, "Jack-in-the-Box happened". The severe food poisoning and deaths resulting from bacterial contamination of hamburgers served by a Jack-in-the-Box restaurant brought intense media attention to issues of food safety. His thesis topic came to him right from the headlines of the daily paper, as he studied communication of information about risk as it relates to the agriculture and food sector.

It’s impossible to discuss food safety today without being drawn into a discussion about the effects of production technologies and Powell has been encouraging agricultural businesses and organizations to anticipate the concerns that might arise in the minds of the public about potentially controversial technologies, such as pesticides or biotechnology. He says the best way to avert a media crisis is by keeping the public informed as new technologies are developed, tested and implemented. With any new development, there is always uncertainty about how it will affect human health or interact with the environment. And where there is uncertainty, fear can easily follow. While no one can really predict what will happen when a new technology is introduced, the concern can be reduced by demonstrating to the public that every precaution is being taken to minimize the risk of a mishap.

Powell stresses that open communications is the key. Farmers must be able to explain to the public they’re using certain technologies and that they’re using them responsibly. Farm organizations have a role in communicating through mass media, but individual farmers should also be prepared to discuss objectively the way they farm with the people they meet one-to-one. Today, the public will not accept the old line "This is too complex for you to understand, so you’ll just have to trust me." They want to know what the benefit will be for them, what the risks are and what is being done to protect against those risks.

Farmers cannot assume that someone else will do this for them. Food processors and other agricultural businesses are actively implementing quality assurance programs in their operations and are beginning to demand the same of their suppliers. Powell says the responsibility for assuring safe food will soon land squarely in the lap of farmers. Not only will they have to continue to produce safe food in an environmentally responsible manner, they must also be able to demonstrate they’re doing so. Besides doing things right, you have to be able to convince your non-farm friends and neighbours that you are.

Being informed is essential, as is using technology in a socially responsible manner. He points to the use of Bt corn as an example. With Bt, there is no evidence that food safety is a concern, but the potential development of pests with resistance to Bt is. One of his graduate students recently surveyed corn producers to determine their attitudes and understanding of biotechnology and related issues. In the case of Bt corn, most growers knew that special precautions had to be taken to avert the development of Bt resistance in European corn borer. Most also knew that this involved growing some corn that did not have the Bt genes for resistance. However, a significant number did not know the recommended way of doing this. They were unaware, for example, that the susceptible corn must be grown in strips or in a block, rather than in intermingling non-Bt seed with the resistant material. The onus is on those promoting a technology to develop a communications plan that will ensure that all users understand how to employ it properly and will do so. Similarly, those using it have the responsibility to be informed and to do things right.

1