WASHINGTON (DTN) -- Gearing up for a series of "food dialogues" across the country Thursday, the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance also released the results of two surveys commissioned to collect attitudes toward food and how it is grown.

The research showed that, while nearly all Americans agree food production is important to the success of the country, they are split over whether it is headed in the right direction, reported the alliance and Ketchum, its public relations firm.

Consumers also think about food production a lot, yet know very little about how food is brought to the dinner table.

Overwhelmingly, farmers and ranchers share the same values as consumers on issues related to environmental stewardship and animal care.

The surveys focused separately on the opinions, attitudes and questions consumers and producers have about the current and future state of how food is grown and raised in the United States, the alliance stated.

The alliance was hosting meetings in Indiana, Washington, D.C., New York City and at the University of California-Davis Thursday. Information can be found at www.fooddialogues.com.

Questions asking Americans what additional information they want about how food is grown and raised showed that "consumers have become disconnected from their food, yet think about the subject regularly," the alliance said.

Consumer Survey Highlights

-- 72% of consumers know nothing or very little about farming or ranching.

-- 69% of consumers think about food production at least somewhat often.

-- 70% say purchase decisions are affected by how food is grown and raised, with 72% of people saying they think about this topic while purchasing groceries.

-- 42%, or about two out of five, of Americans say the way food is grown and raised has improved in the last 10 years, while a slightly smaller group, 37%, say it has worsened.

Optimism and skepticism is comparable. Those who say the way food is grown has improved cite food safety, 22%, and food quality, 17%, as proof. Whereas 21% of respondents who said the way food is grown and raised has worsened also cite problems with food safety and food quality.

Of all the aspects of how food is grown and raised, 73% of consumers are satisfied with the availability of healthy foods and 66% are satisfied with food-safety standards.

One in five consumers who say food production has worsened in the last 10 years say environmental impact is the top area of concern.

-- 79% of consumers say producing healthy choices for all consumers is very important for farmers and ranchers to consider when planning farming and ranching practices.

Consumers asked to identify the top five topics on which they want more information responded they wanted to know more about how chemicals and pesticides are used, food-safety standards, government regulations on farming and ranching, antibiotic use in animals and genetic engineering in crops.

Farmer/Rancher Survey Highlights

Farmers and ranchers said the top misconception they need to overcome as an industry is that a few "bad actors" are representative of the entire industry.

Additionally, farmers and ranchers identified the effect of pesticides, antibiotics and fertilizers on food as the most important priorities they should address when communicating with consumers.

Additional findings included:

-- 86% of farmers/ranchers responded that the average consumer has little to no knowledge about modern farming/ranching.

-- 58% of respondents in this survey felt consumers have a completely inaccurate perception of farming and ranching.

-- Nearly all farmers and ranchers say that protecting the environment, 99%, and practicing humane animal care, 96%, are very or somewhat important goals or practices related to their business.

-- 80% of farmers and ranchers say that consumers have little to no knowledge about proper care of livestock or poultry.

-- 83% of farmers/ranchers responded that new ways of improving yields with fewer environmental inputs will have a major impact on farming/ranching in the future.

When asked which top five topics were most important to educate consumers about, farmers and ranchers responded: The effect of pesticides, fertilizers and antibiotics on food, where food comes from in general, proper care of livestock and poultry, effect of government regulations on farming and ranching, and the economic value of agriculture.

ABOUT THE SURVEYS: The 2011 USFRA Farmer/Rancher Survey was fielded by phone for USFRA by Ketchum Global Research Network and Braun Research Aug. 6-18, 2011, reaching 1,002 farmers and ranchers nationwide. The base sample has a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percent.

The USFRA Consumer Survey was fielded by phone for USFRA by Ketchum Global Research Network and Braun Research Aug. 24-31, 2011, reaching 2,417 consumers nationwide. The base sample has a margin of error of +/- 2.0 percent.

Jerry Hagstrom can be reached at jerry.hagstrom@telventdtn.com

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