Latest from Food Politics: Food companies want you to trust them-a lot

The Institute for Food Technology , which publishes Food Technology, has been exploring the growing challenge of misinformation and the importance of building public trust in food science. Alongside highlights from IFT FIRST sessions on myth busting and ...

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By Marion Nestle October 30 2025 Food companies want you to trust them—a lot The Institute for Food Technology , which publishes Food Technology, has been exploring the growing challenge of misinformation and the importance of building public trust in food science. Alongside highlights from IFT FIRST sessions on myth busting and consumer trust, it features Food Technology contributors and thought leaders examining how transparency, empathy, and effective communication can help bridge the gap between scientific evidence and public perception. Here are some of the articles. Fighting Food Misinformation:  To counter science denial, lead with empathy, communication experts advise. How Food Companies Can Win Back Trust: Drawing on insights from the IFT FIRST session “How Can Food Companies Earn Trust While Combatting Misinformation?” Linda Eatherton outlines why credibility is the true currency of food innovation and how companies can strengthen reputation through empathy, transparency, and sustained communication. Read more A ‘Clear’ Path to Regaining Public Trust in Food and Beverage: Concerns about public trust in the food system have been part of the conversation for years—surfacing even at an IFT FIRST Scientific & Technical Forum in 2023 where experts from Edelman and IFIC discussed how fear and misinformation shape consumer confidence. They emphasized that transparency, speed, and empathy are essential for rebuilding credibility. Read more Building Relevance and Trust in the Food Sciences: IFT Immediate Past President Christopher Daubert calls for a balanced, evidence-based approach to debates over ultra-processed foods and reminds food professionals that facts alone are not enough—trust is built through transparency and shared values. Read more The Messy, Fine Art of Science Communication: Laura Lindenfeld of Stony Brook University’s Alan Alda Center discusses why empathy, storytelling, and listening are critical tools for scientists seeking to make their work heard and believed in an age of skepticism. She explains how communication grounded in trust and connection—not jargon or defensiveness—can help bridge the gap between scientific expertise and public understanding. Read more The Transformative Power of Positivity: Food scientist Kantha Shelke advocates for an “appreciative inquiry” approach to food communication—focusing on what’s strong, not what’s wrong—to shift public perception and reinforce trust in food science. She encourages food professionals to highlight innovation, progress, and the positive impact of scientific advances rather than emphasizing fear or limitation.  Read more ‘Ultra-Processed’ Foods and the Question of Consumer Trust:  Food scientist Matt Teegarden questions the Nova food classification system’s broad definition of ultra-processed foods and its influence on how consumers perceive healthfulness and trust in the food system. He calls for more precise, science-based frameworks to guide research, policy, and communication around diet and processing.  Read more Comment: Here’s some simple advice to food companies worried about why the public doesn’t trust them or their products.  If you want to be trusted, behave in a trustworthy manner. Put public health and nutrition first. Don’t advertise ridiculous health claims. Don’t market ultra-procesed foods to kids. Don’t use your ingredient lists to obfuscate what’s in your products (e.g., sugar synonyms). If something is wrong, own up to it. Don’t condescend to your customers. Don’t try to convince them your products are healthy and environmentally sustainable if they are not. Trusted companies have these rules built into their culture. Their stockholders respect them for it. So will their customers. The post Food companies want you to trust them—a lot appeared first on Food Politics by Marion Nestle      Related Posts Unilever finally clamps down on Ben & Jerry’s Weekend Reading: Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor: Food and Ag Weekend reading: The effects of GLP-1 drugs on food industry   Coming Soon: What to Eat Now My new book What to Eat Now is a field guide to food shopping in America, and a treatise on how to eat well and deliciously. Forthcoming November 11, 2025 For more information and pre-orders, click here. You can explore the full archive of this (almost) daily blog at foodpolitics.com, where you'll also find information about my books, articles, media interviews, upcoming lectures, favorite resources, and FAQs. Visit the Site » ​​​​​​​ Marion Nestle Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, Emerita © Marion Nestle. You're receiving this email because you've signed up to receive updates from us. If you'd prefer not to receive updates, you can unsubscribe. Safely Unsubscribe • Archives • Preferences • Contact • Subscribe • Privacy

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Latest from Food Politics: What I'm reading: MAGA vs. MAHA

From last week’s The Guardian: “Inside the Republican network behind big soda’s bid to pit Maga against Maha: A Guardian investigation finds the US soda and snack-food industries, threatened by RFK Jr’s movement to change Americans’ eating ...

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By Marion Nestle October 29 2025 What I’m reading: MAGA vs. MAHA From last week’s The Guardian: “Inside the Republican network behind big soda’s bid to pit Maga against Maha: A Guardian investigation finds the US soda and snack-food industries, threatened by RFK Jr’s movement to change Americans’ eating habits, have turned to a group of well-connected strategists, shadowy pollsters and ‘anti-woke’ influencers.” The ongoing influence campaign is being spearheaded by the American Beverage Association with help from the Consumer Brands Association, two prominent trade groups in the food industry. Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Keurig Dr Pepper, the three largest soft-drink corporations in the United States, as well as packaged-food conglomerates like General Mills, Kraft Heinz, Mondelēz and Nestlé, are among those that pay dues for the right to have a say in either or both of the trade groups’ strategies. All three soda-makers identified the Maha efforts as significant threats to their bottom lines in their most recent annual reports, delivered to investors after Trump nominated Kennedy to be secretary of US Health and Human Services. Coke and Dr Pepper went as far as to suggest such risks would be compounded if unnamed “government officials” were to voice health concerns about their products.The three soda makers did not respond to questions about the lobbying effort. The article goes on to explain the lobbying methods and paid influencer campaigns, at the federal level but also in states considering legislation on food dyes (which take care of many ultra-processed foods) and restrictions on sodas in SNAP. Whether the MAHA food agenda is real or a smokescreen (see yesterday’s post), anything useful it tries to do will come up against this kind of concerted, well-funded effort, which may be why the second MAHA report backed off on so many issues. The post What I’m reading: MAGA vs. MAHA appeared first on Food Politics by Marion Nestle      Related Posts Is RFK, Jr’s interest in food just a smokescreen? A MAHA Win? Beginning to close the GRAS loophole. USDA resuscitates farm to school program, sort of   Coming Soon: What to Eat Now My new book What to Eat Now is a field guide to food shopping in America, and a treatise on how to eat well and deliciously. Forthcoming November 11, 2025 For more information and pre-orders, click here. You can explore the full archive of this (almost) daily blog at foodpolitics.com, where you'll also find information about my books, articles, media interviews, upcoming lectures, favorite resources, and FAQs. Visit the Site » ​​​​​​​ Marion Nestle Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, Emerita © Marion Nestle. You're receiving this email because you've signed up to receive updates from us. If you'd prefer not to receive updates, you can unsubscribe. Safely Unsubscribe • Archives • Preferences • Contact • Subscribe • Privacy

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