NPR poll: Majority of Americans prefer organics, most want produce from either farmers markets or home gardens rather than supermarkets

Friday, July 29, 2011 by: Ethan A. Huff, staff writer
Tags: farmers markets, home gardens, health news

(NaturalNews) When it comes down to pure consumer preference, the majority of Americans prefer organic food over conventional food, according to the results of a new poll released by NPR. Most Americans also prefer to obtain produce from either a farmers market or from a home garden rather than from a supermarket, which represents an important shift in public awareness concerning food.

NPR conducted its poll via telephone, asking more than 3,000 adults various questions about their organic and non-organic food buying preferences. Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they prefer to buy and eat organic food over non-organic food, while thirty-six percent said they prefer to buy fruits and vegetables from a farmers market rather than from a supermarket. Twenty percent of respondents stated that produce grown in a home garden was their first choice.

The most popular stated reason for preferring organic food over conventional was a desire to support local farmers rather than factory-farm conglomerates, followed by concern over toxins and other chemicals as the second most popular reason. Those with the highest levels of education were also the most concerned about toxins in non-organic food.

Interestingly, the 31 percent of folks who said they prefer non-organic food over organic food stated that higher cost was their biggest issue. The second most popular reason stated for preferring non-organic over organic concerned the limited availability of organics in the market.

Overall, 11 percent of respondents stated that they did not care whether or not the food they buy and consume is organic or non-organic. Older respondents tended to care less about organics than younger respondents, as 17 percent of the elderly expressed unconcern about organics.

To view the entire NPR report containing full poll details, visit:
http://www.factsforhealthcare.com/pressroom/...

Sources for this story include:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/07/20/1...