from experts all contributed to the complexity and level of public pesticide fears. Par-
ticipants saw the pesticide dilemma as a long-term problem due to the vested interests
of chemical manufacturers and the necessity of pest control, which conflict with pub-
lic health and environmental fears.^50
Safety information from the academic community was found to have the greatest
likelihood of acceptance by consumers when compared to other information sources
such as the government and the media. Other polls have indicated that 70 to 85 per-
cent of the national population exhibits a medium to high degree of concern toward
pesticide residue and pesticide usage. A study of four cities reported that 83 percent
of respondents were risk averse to pesticide usage.^51 Another survey had 86 percent
of respondents expressing concern for pesticide usage.^52 In another survey, more than
700 conventional and organic fresh produce buyers in the Boston area were asked
about their perceived food safety risks. Responses indicated that consumers perceived
relatively high risks associated with the consumption and production of convention-
ally grown produce compared to other public health hazards. For example, conven-
tional and organic food buyers estimated the median annual fatality rate due to
pesticide residues on conventionally grown food to be about fifty per million and
200 per million, respectively, which is similar in magnitude to the annual mortality
risk from motor vehicle accidents in the United States. More than 90 percent of sur-
vey respondents also perceived a reduction in pesticide residue risk association with
substituting organically grown produce for conventionally grown produce.^53 With
sustainable and environmentally safer forms of agriculture likely to comprise a more
significant share of the nation’s food production, predicting which consumers are
likely to have high concerns about synthetic pesticide residues should be beneficial to
identifying those who are more likely to purchase low-input agriculture such as Inte-
grated Pest Management (IPM) and organically grown produce.The Organic Alternative: Reasons for Organic Food GrowthExpansion in organic food products requires a number of conditions, including
sustained consumer interest and availability of organic-certified farmland on which to
grow the crops in the United States. Consumer interest is paramount and food safety
is likely to remain the most important issue for consumers. Food scares surrounding
non-organically grown products (for example, BSE in cows or chemical and pesticide
residues in fish) will drive consumers to seek out the perceived safety of organic alter-
natives. As long as organic foods are considered safe, more consumers will turn to
them.
Three forces aid substantial organic growth: 1) rising consumer concern about
the integrity of the food supply; 2) governmental standards that clearly define the
meaning of the term ‘‘organic’’; and 3) greater availability of organic foods through
mainstream channels. It is significant that ‘‘organic’’ is a production claim, not a
food safety or content claim. The termrefers to the way in which food is grown
and handled, and as a concept does not govern whether or not the food is safer or98 | Pesticides