Department of Information Systems and Computing, Brunel University, Kingston Lane, Uxbridge, UB8 3PH, UK.
BMC Public Health. 2011 May 13;11:308. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-308.
European consumers are faced with a myriad of food related risk and benefit information and it is regularly left up to the consumer to interpret these, often conflicting, pieces of information as a coherent message. This conflict is especially apparent in times of food crises and can have major public health implications. Scientific results and risk assessments cannot always be easily communicated into simple guidelines and advice that non-scientists like the public or the media can easily understand especially when there is conflicting, uncertain or complex information about a particular food or aspects thereof. The need for improved strategies and tools for communication about food risks and benefits is therefore paramount. The FoodRisC project ("Food Risk Communication - Perceptions and communication of food risks/benefits across Europe: development of effective communication strategies") aims to address this issue. The FoodRisC project will examine consumer perceptions and investigate how people acquire and use information in food domains in order to develop targeted strategies for food communication across Europe.
METHODS/DESIGN: This project consists of 6 research work packages which, using qualitative and quantitative methodologies, are focused on development of a framework for investigating food risk/benefit issues across Europe, exploration of the role of new and traditional media in food communication and testing of the framework in order to develop evidence based communication strategies and tools. The main outcome of the FoodRisC project will be a toolkit to enable coherent communication of food risk/benefit messages in Europe. The toolkit will integrate theoretical models and new measurement paradigms as well as building on social marketing approaches around consumer segmentation. Use of the toolkit and guides will assist policy makers, food authorities and other end users in developing common approaches to communicating coherent messages to consumers in Europe.
The FoodRisC project offers a unique approach to the investigation of food risk/benefit communication. The effective spread of food risk/benefit information will assist initiatives aimed at reducing the burden of food-related illness and disease, reducing the economic impact of food crises and ensuring that confidence in safe and nutritious food is fostered and maintained in Europe.
欧洲消费者面临着无数与食品相关的风险和利益信息，通常需要消费者将这些相互冲突的信息解读为一个连贯的信息。这种冲突在食品危机时期尤为明显，可能对公众健康产生重大影响。科学结果和风险评估并不总能轻易转化为简单的准则和建议，让公众或媒体等非科学家理解，尤其是当涉及某种食品或其某些方面的信息存在冲突、不确定或复杂时。因此，需要改进食品风险和利益沟通策略和工具。“FoodRisC 项目（“食品风险沟通 - 欧洲对食品风险/利益的看法和沟通：制定有效的沟通策略”）旨在解决这个问题。该项目将研究消费者的看法，并调查人们如何在食品领域获取和使用信息，以便为整个欧洲的食品沟通制定有针对性的策略。
方法/设计：该项目由 6 个研究工作包组成，使用定性和定量方法，专注于开发一个跨欧洲调查食品风险/利益问题的框架，探索新的和传统媒体在食品沟通中的作用，并测试该框架，以制定基于证据的沟通策略和工具。FoodRisC 项目的主要成果将是一个工具包，使欧洲能够连贯地传达食品风险/利益信息。该工具包将整合理论模型和新的测量范式，以及围绕消费者细分的社会营销方法。该工具包和指南的使用将协助政策制定者、食品当局和其他最终用户制定向欧洲消费者传达连贯信息的共同方法。
FoodRisC 项目为食品风险/利益沟通的研究提供了一种独特的方法。有效传播食品风险/利益信息将有助于减少与食品相关的疾病和疾病负担、降低食品危机的经济影响，并确保在欧洲培养和维护对安全和营养食品的信心的倡议。
