Français
Chicken Farmers of Canada recently attended the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI) Public Trust Summit in Toronto. The Summit gives agriculture and agri-food stakeholders an opportunity to learn from industry experts on trends, consumer awareness, and best practices in building public trust.
Each year at the Summit, CCFI releases the results of its Public Trust Research, providing more insight into the latest trends and challenges in Canada’s agri-food system. Based on a large representative national survey, the results indicate that Canadians are growing increasingly concerned about food costs and affordability of healthy food.
The 2023 research has revealed that 47% of Canadians rate their concern about the affordability of healthy food as a 9-10 out of 10, which is a significant increase of eight points higher than 2022 and a staggering nineteen points higher than in 2020, with 28% being “very concerned”.
The CCFI research results also indicate that despite the dominance of cost concerns, Canadians remain confident in the agri-food industry’s ability to innovate, grow, and operate freely. Two key indicators have remained unchanged year over year: public trust across most food and agriculture stakeholders, and the proportion of Canadians who feel the food system is headed in right direction. Despite this stability, the food system must continue to communicate proactively and transparently about the central consumer issue of food costs and affordability.
As the world transitions from a pandemic to an endemic state, Canadians are increasingly focusing on concerns close to home and recognizing the importance of health and food. 54% of Canadians reported actively seeking information about nutrition and healthy eating. However, when it comes to gaining public trust in the agri-food system, it is essential to understand individual interests, beliefs, and concerns to effectively engage with Canadians.
