Re-Interpreting Data: Turning Positive Food Safety News Into Something Negative

Alliance blogs and a Food Safety News editorial have focused on the recently released results of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Pesticide Data Program. We wanted to share the positive report results to help reassure consumers that eating more organic and conventional fruits and veggies is the right choice for their families – both are very safe and should be eaten with confidence.

However, we know that in the coming weeks certain groups will “re-interpret” and “re-package” the USDA PDP results and somehow turn a positive food safety story into a negative one. What motivates groups to do this is open for discussion, but this negative “re-interpretation” of USDA’s report into so-called shopping guides and "good produce/bad produce" lists receives media coverage every year.

However, this manipulation of government data is yet another clear example of how these groups raise food safety fears without facts and unfairly disparage the safety of conventionally grown, more affordable produce. And the result is that these efforts are having a negative impact on consumer choice, they are a disservice to families struggling to put healthy food on the table, and they’re becoming a detriment to public health efforts aimed at raising consumption of fruits and vegetables.

To read the rest of the story, please go to: Alliance for Food and Farming