TY - JOUR

T1 - Food safety and ethics

T2 - the interplay between science and values

AU - Jensen, Karsten Klint

AU - Sandøe, Peter

PY - 2002

Y1 - 2002

N2 - The general public in Europe seems to have lost its confidence in food safety. The remedy for this, as proposed by the Commission of the EU, is a scientific rearmament. The question, however, is whether more science will be able to overturn the public distrust. Present experience seems to suggest the contrary, because there is widespread distrust in the science-based governmental control systems. The answer to this problem is the creation of an independent scientific Food Authority. However, we argue that independent scientific advice alone is unlikely to re-establish public confidence. It is much more important to make the scientific advice transparent, i.e., to state explicitly the factual and normative premises on which it is based. Risk assessments are based on a rather narrow, but welldefined notion of risk. However, the public is concerned with a broader value context that comprises both benefits and risks. Transparency and understanding of the public’s perception of food risks is a necessary first step in establishing the urgently required public dialogue about the complex value questions involved in food production.

AB - The general public in Europe seems to have lost its confidence in food safety. The remedy for this, as proposed by the Commission of the EU, is a scientific rearmament. The question, however, is whether more science will be able to overturn the public distrust. Present experience seems to suggest the contrary, because there is widespread distrust in the science-based governmental control systems. The answer to this problem is the creation of an independent scientific Food Authority. However, we argue that independent scientific advice alone is unlikely to re-establish public confidence. It is much more important to make the scientific advice transparent, i.e., to state explicitly the factual and normative premises on which it is based. Risk assessments are based on a rather narrow, but welldefined notion of risk. However, the public is concerned with a broader value context that comprises both benefits and risks. Transparency and understanding of the public’s perception of food risks is a necessary first step in establishing the urgently required public dialogue about the complex value questions involved in food production.

M3 - Journal article

VL - 15

SP - 245

EP - 253

JO - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics

JF - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics

SN - 1187-7863

IS - 3

ER -