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Gallup polling published October 8 found that 65% of Americans are very or somewhat confident food sold in grocery stores is safe, the lowest level in the poll’s history. Confidence in the federal government’s ability to ensure food safety fell to 47%, while 73% said they avoided a food or brand because of a recall or advisory in the past year. Food Safety News publisher Bill Marler proposed 10 reforms; the polling does not establish why confidence declined.
Gallup polling released October 8 found that 65% of Americans are very or somewhat confident that food sold in grocery stores is safe to eat, the lowest level the poll has recorded. Confidence in the federal government’s ability to ensure food safety stood at 47%, also a record low, as Food Safety News publisher Bill Marler used the results to call for changes to recalls, outbreak surveillance, inspections and enforcement.
Gallup’s figures show confidence in grocery-store food safety fell from 73% in 2025 and 81% in 2019. Confidence in the federal government has declined from 68% in 2019 and 85% in 2004. The supplied report says this is the first time a majority of Americans reported little or no confidence in the government’s role in keeping food safe.
Respondents also described actions and concerns linked to food recalls or advisories. Seventy-three percent said they avoided certain brands or types of food in the past year, up from 53% in 2024; 45% said they threw out or returned food, and 42% said they worried something they had eaten might have been contaminated. These are survey responses, not measurements of the number of contaminated products or illnesses.
Marler, a food-safety lawyer and Food Safety News publisher, proposed 10 steps: publish store lists for recalled products; identify companies linked to outbreaks; restore broader CDC FoodNet pathogen surveillance; avoid further delays to food-traceability requirements; investigate nearby animal operations in some produce outbreaks; fund inspection and public-health staffing; regulate Salmonella in poultry as an adulterant; warn consumers about certain high-risk foods; pursue executive accountability; and create a single independent federal food-safety agency. These are Marler’s recommendations, not announced government actions.
Recall Decisions Reflect Falling Trust
The poll suggests that food-safety concerns are affecting what shoppers buy and whether they keep food at home. Avoiding products after a recall can protect consumers, but broad or unclear notices can also make it difficult to know which products and locations are involved. Marler argues that shoppers need clearer information, including where recalled products were distributed and which businesses have been linked to an outbreak.
The reported partisan gap in confidence contrasts with responses about consumer behavior. Gallup’s figures, as relayed in the source, put confidence in government at 70% among Republicans and 30% among Democrats. Yet the shares who said they avoided food because of recalls were 63% among Republicans, 73% among independents and 81% among Democrats. The figures indicate that reported avoidance crosses party lines; they do not establish what caused the behavior or prove that any proposed policy would restore confidence.
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Outbreak Claims and Federal Oversight
Food Safety News connects the decline to a Cyclospora outbreak that ran from June until officials declared it over on September 11. The publication describes it as the largest in U.S. history, with more than 12,000 illnesses across 21 states. The supplied article does not identify the underlying federal or state records supporting that count. Marler says state health department figures were much higher, but provides no figures in the material supplied here. The size of the alleged gap cannot be independently assessed from this source alone.
Marler’s proposals touch several agencies and rules. Food-safety responsibilities are divided among bodies including the FDA, USDA and CDC. He says Congress delayed compliance with the Food Safety Modernization Act traceability rule until 2028; the source does not give further details about the delay or its implementation. He also says he has petitions pending with the FDA on retail distribution information and company identification, and another concerning sampling near animal feeding operations. The source states he is preparing petitions on warnings for raw milk cheese and raw sprouts, with comments welcome through October 15.
“Confidence is not restored by press releases. It is restored by transparency, by prevention, and by accountability.”
— Bill Marler, Food Safety News publisher
Survey and Outbreak Details Missing
The supplied report does not provide Gallup’s survey dates, sample size, question wording or margin of error, so readers cannot assess those methodological details here. It also does not identify the source for the Cyclospora illness count or provide state-level totals to substantiate Marler’s assertion that the actual count was much higher. Gallup’s reported association between the outbreak and falling confidence does not, on its own, establish that the outbreak caused the change.
There is no indication in the source that federal agencies have accepted Marler’s proposals, acted on his petitions, or begun an investigation into the Boar’s Head Listeria outbreak. His questions about investigations and his policy recommendations are advocacy, not confirmation that officials failed to act or that a particular reform would prevent future outbreaks.
Petitions and Traceability Milestones
Marler says comments on his planned warning-label petitions for raw milk cheese and raw sprouts are welcome through October 15. The source also says his petitions on recall distribution information, outbreak-linked companies and sampling near animal feeding operations are pending at the FDA. It does not give decision dates for those petitions.
The next developments to watch are any FDA response to the petitions, further public details about the Gallup survey and the Cyclospora case count, and implementation of the federal food-traceability requirements. The source identifies 2028 as the compliance date following a congressional delay, but does not specify what interim measures agencies or food businesses may take before then.
Key Questions
What did the Gallup poll find?
Sixty-five percent of respondents were very or somewhat confident grocery-store food is safe to eat, the lowest figure Gallup has recorded, according to the supplied report. Confidence in the federal government’s food-safety role was 47%.
How many people said they avoided food after a recall or advisory?
Seventy-three percent said they avoided certain brands or types of food in the past year because of a recall or advisory. The report compares that with 53% in 2024.
Did the government adopt Marler’s 10 proposals?
The source does not report that any agency or Congress adopted them. They are recommendations from Marler; he says several related petitions are pending or in preparation.
What remains uncertain about the poll and Cyclospora outbreak?
The supplied report gives no survey field dates, sample size or margin of error. It also does not provide the records behind the outbreak’s reported illness total or the state figures Marler says were higher.
Source: rss
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