Introduction
Consumer preferences have been greatly
influenced by growing concerns about food safety.
The February 1989 release of the controversial
report, “Intolerable Risk: Pesticides in our
Children’s Food, ” by the Natural Resources
Defense Council spurred a nationwide fear that
brought food safety issues into the public and
political spotlight (Shimskey, 1989).
The actual health risks continue to be
debated. Nevertheless, the results of a consumer
attitude survey conducted by the Food Marketing
Institute show that chemical use and pesticide
residue in the food supply is a major worry
among consumers (Winter, 1988).