Food Protection Trends - January/February 2015 - 27

and answer (Q & A) response to the chemical news story or
a new narrative (experimental) response that incorporated
insights gleaned from focus groups. Unlike a familiar or
expected Q & A presentation, the experimental response
presented health information in a casual, story-oriented
format. These responses allow for comparison of both
respondent reactions to acrylamide and BPA, in addition to
accounting for differences in response format (i.e., the Q &
A vs. the experimental response).
The articles used in phase two (the message-testing
portion of the survey) were selected by IFIC. The
experimental response was crafted using information
gathered from phase one (the qualitative portion of the
study). The Q & A format was selected as a conventional
and expected format for delivering health information.
Words and phrases that elicited positive perceptions and
increased confidence in respondents were integrated
into the styles of both response documents to gain more
feedback from consumers on positive and negative
concepts, phrases, and specific word choices.
RESULTS
Phase one of focus groups: Attitudes toward food
Results from phase one confirmed that attitudes
toward chemicals are strongly negative among those who
care about chemicals, especially mothers who are very
sensitive to the issue. These mothers are young (18-34),
have an above-average higher household income, are
knowledgeable about food topics, and are engaged with
most aspects of food, including shopping. They are also
more likely to use social media as a source of information.
These findings were further validated in phase two. The
distrust of chemicals appears to stem from uncertainty
concerning the potential consequences of exposure to
chemicals from diet, or from a lack of understanding about
chemicals in general. However, it is also important to
note that chemicals are not identified as one of the most
prominent health issues that mothers associate with their
food. Furthermore, focus group results reveal that mothers
take very few actions with regard to specific chemicals in
response to food safety concerns.
Phase one of focus groups: Low-to-moderate health
literacy mothers
Of the 32 total participants, 15 mothers had low-tomoderate health literacy. Overwhelmingly, in response
to the moderator's prompts asking about positive
characteristics of food, mothers responded that perceiving
a food as natural or pure was very important to them.
The term "natural" was woven through all eight focus
groups. In total, participants used the term "natural" 94
times. In addition, participants also frequently used the
term "organic," which was used a total of 26 times as
representing a positive food association.

foodprotection.org

test was employed with respondents (n = 100). The pilot
consisted of respondents from Artemis Strategy Group
of Michigan, a communications strategy research firm
specializing in motivation research.
Pilot respondents were selected from a national database based on qualifying questions. Survey respondents
included mothers with at least one child aged 17 or
younger and living at home. Other key screening factors
included the requirement that respondents be the primary
grocery shopper for the family and not be employed by
a sensitive industry (defined as a grocery store, advertising company, or food-oriented government agency).
The results suggested that survey instruments measured
constructs effectively and that users correctly understood
survey questions. We did not modify the questionnaire
following the pilot test.
After the pilot test, an electronic questionnaire was
administered to 1,000 mothers from a list of individuals
provided by Artemis. The final survey used the same
screening factors as the pilot study. Of those who
received the final survey, 84% successfully completed
their questionnaire. On average, respondents required 16
minutes to complete the questionnaire.
Respondents received one of two versions of the final
questionnaire. Version A contained questions specifically
about acrylamide (n = 500), and version B contained
questions about Bisphenol A (BPA) (n = 500). Acrylamide
is a naturally occurring compound that forms in certain
foods that are baked, fried, or toasted. Studies indicate that
at extremely high doses, such as those in some industrial
or manufacturing settings, acrylamide is carcinogenic.
However, only traces of naturally-occurring acrylamide have
been detected in a broad range of foods such as cookies,
crackers, and baked and fried foods (3). BPA is a compound
used in some plastics (e.g., incorporated into baby bottles
and reusable cups, and into the lining of metal-coated food
and beverage containers to ensure safety and packaging
integrity.) Over time, the plastic may deteriorate and
potentially expose consumers to trace levels of BPA; in
cans, small amounts may migrate into food. Results from
recent studies support FDA's assessment (4) that the use
of BPA in food packaging and containers is safe. BPA was
selected for inclusion in this study because it is a man-made,
well-known packaging compound that is likely familiar to
consumers. In contrast, acrylamide is a less well-known,
naturally occurring chemical.
As already mentioned, of the total sample of 1,000
respondents, 500 were assigned to complete a questionnaire
for acrylamide and 500 for BPA. Each respondent was
given a published news article on one of these two
chemicals to read that discussed its potential negative health
consequences. After reading the article, respondents viewed
only one of two possible responses to the chemical issue.
Randomly assigned respondents viewed either a question

Food Protection Trends

http://www.foodprotection.org

Food Protection Trends - January/February 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - January/February 2015