| Risk analysis—the integration of assessment, management and communication—has been used by government, academia, food industry, and consumers, to develop food safety risk policies. The internationally distributed listservs, the Food Safety, Agriculture and Animal Networks, produced at the University of Guelph were developed to aid in the interactive communication amongst stakeholders demanded by an integrative risk analysis model. This thesis attempted to determine whether the information in the listservs was being used to address food safety risk issues that appear in the media and to identify differences in the risk perceptions held by the groups noted above. Although the attitudes towards food safety issues were found similar, the terms used by the public, government, industry and academia may have different interpretations. A better understanding of the players involved in risk analysis can lead to more effective risk management and risk communication strategies and, ultimately, more responsive public policies. |
