Consumers and Food:Perceptions, Realities and Steps

Towards Instilling Confidence

Leann SaundersPresident

Where Food Comes From, Inc.

Today consumers…Rely on media for vast

majority of their informationHave constant confusion

over what is right/healthy/cost effective/safe/green…

The Consumer Dynamic

Humanizing our food. The average consumer is at least 3

generations removed from the farm or ranch

Begins at the Source

Making the connection

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“What can I feed my family that is safe and

nutritious?”

Today consumers…

Food is often an emotional purchaseWe feed our families and “how” we

feed our families can dictate our health, how we learn and our future

It is an important decisionPerceptions of health can drive

decisions because ,“We aren’t in the paperclip business”.

Today’s consumers are very diverse

The Consumer Dynamic

Today consumers… Over 60% of consumers are reading

product labels 61% of consumers think our food system

is “Safe” or “Very Safe” 50% of consumers think its “Important” or

“Very Important” to know if an animal was treated with antibiotics when purchasing meat, dairy and egg products

50 – 84% across retailers said that source verification was important to them

Research Recap

Where Food Comes From® beganwith the consumer in mind.

What we are doing

Where Food Comes From® is a consumer brand dedicated to communicating the traceability and source verification behind a food product.

Begins at the Source

We can choose to disregard and discredit or we can see this as great opportunityTo communicate transparently and honestlyIt is all about trust…in all relationships it is about trustWe have to provide retailers with tools for effective communicationWe must walk in a Mother’s shoes Because at the end of the day consumers don’t have to to purchase meat protein, there are other optionsToday’s consumers are very diverseSo we must not get into a “group think” mentality on the production sideThere is room for various kinds of production systems

Our Collective Responsibility