Report on applied risk communication policy models

Recent analyses from WHO estimate that bacteria, parasites, toxins and allergens in food 
account for about 23 million cases of illness and 5,000 deaths in Europe every year. Hence, 
there is a need for new strategies for the scientific community, authorities and the market to 
help consumers mitigate food risks. Food safety authorities play a crucial role as they have a 
high reach and through adequate risk communication strategies affect consumer behaviors
towards risks. 
In a multidisciplinary approach, an online questionnaire was developed to map and analyse 
all European national level food safety authorities and their applied risk management 
approaches, including policies for communication, education and legislative issues. The EU 
Food Safety Almanac and the competent institutions according to EFSAs’ article 36 were 
used as a starting point to create a completed contact list of relevant actors in the field of food 
safety. All representatives were invited to participate in the online survey via email. The 
resulting data (76 responses) was analysed within and across countries. In the analysis, 
descriptive statistics were combined with qualitative information. In addition, the network 
analysis methods were used to map the relational structures in the national food safety 
systems and relate them to risk communication approaches and initiatives. Additionally, 
country reports focus on the most significant results of the participant countries. 
The specific reports of the countries analysed underly the variety of actors on EU level. Given 
this plurality and the great heterogeneity of risk communication practices on EU level, results 
indicate that designating roles and responsibilities among authorities is necessary in order to 
reduce the possibility of confusion and overlap.