Influence of school education and advice received at home in the past on current food safety perceptions

The perception of food safety is one of the influencing factors for the decision-making process in food choice. Using binary logistic regression analysis, this study examines the association between current food safety per-ceptions (considering two topics: food additives and pesticide residues) among Japanese young adults and school education and advice received at home in the past along with consideration of other factors that may have influenced current food safety perceptions. The results of a large-scale survey (N = 1,200, representative of the population aged 18-39) suggest that what was taught at school and home in the past could influence the current perceptions of both genders. School education has contributed to positive and negative perceptions of the safety of additives and pesticides. Advice from the family seemed to foster more negative than positive perceptions. To develop sound food safety perceptions, it may be essential to provide adequate knowledge about food safety and eliminate misleading information in childhood education. Considering that everyone can become an instructor for the next generation, it is necessary to strengthen consumers' scientific knowledge and information literacy.

Automated summary

This study explores the association between current perceptions of food safety (considering food additives and pesticide residues) among Japanese young adults and their school education and family advice received in the past. The findings suggest that both school education and family advice can influence the current perceptions of food safety in both genders, with school education contributing to both positive and negative perceptions, and family advice leading to more negative perceptions. To develop sound food safety perceptions, it is important to provide adequate knowledge and eliminate misleading information in childhood education, and to strengthen consumers' scientific knowledge and information literacy.