Thomson Reuters-NPR Health Poll Finds More Than Half of Americans Prefer Organic Foods Over Conventional

Fear of Toxins, Support of Local Markets at the Heart of Consumer Sentiment

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Jul 20, 2011, 09:59 ET

ANN ARBOR, Mich. and WASHINGTON, July 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- When given a choice, American consumers prefer to purchase organic foods, according to the Thomson Reuters-NPR Health Poll.

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Thomson Reuters and NPR developed the monthly poll to gauge attitudes and opinions on a wide range of health issues.

In the latest survey in the series, 58 percent of Americans say they choose organic over conventionally produced foods when they have the opportunity, a number that spikes higher among both young and highly educated respondents. Sixty-three percent of respondents under the age of 35 prefer organic foods, as do 64 percent of those with a bachelor's degree or more.

Among those who prefer organic foods, 36 percent said they do so to support local farmer's markets and 34 percent said they wanted to avoid exposure to toxins in non-organic foods. Complete survey results are available here: http://www.factsforhealthcare.com/pressroom/NPR_report_OrganicFoods.pdf

"There appears to be a generational difference in preference for organic foods," said Raymond Fabius, M.D., chief medical officer at the healthcare business of Thomson Reuters. "The strong, positive sentiment among young people indicates they are more concerned with exposure to toxins and place a higher premium on supporting local markets. It stands to reason that, by expanding the network of farmer's markets, we could see a further groundswell around the support for organic foods."

"This month's poll gives us some insight into what is going through consumers' minds when they're making the choice of what they will feed themselves and their families," said Scott Hensley, NPR health correspondent and blogger. "We find it especially intriguing that a very small percentage of respondents are choosing organic foods based on taste. This makes organic vs. conventional a really unique case where food decisions are being made consciously by consumers."

To date, Thomson Reuters and NPR have addressed a number of healthcare topics, gauging sentiment on generic drugs, abortion, vaccines, food safety and other issues. NPR's reports on the latest and past surveys are archived here: http://www.npr.org/templates/archives/archive.php?thingId=137038712&ps=sh_sttag

Thomson Reuters also offers a library of poll results: http://healthcare.thomsonreuters.com/npr/

The Thomson Reuters-NPR Health Poll is powered by the Thomson Reuters PULSE(SM)Healthcare Survey, an independently funded, nationally representative telephone poll, which collects information about health behavior, attitudes and utilization from more than 100,000 US households annually. Survey questions are developed in conjunction with NPR. The figures in this month's poll are based on 3,014 participants interviewed from May 2-13, 2011. The margin of error is 1.8 percent.

About Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, healthcare and science and media markets, powered by the world's most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 55,000 people and operates in over 100 countries. For more information, go to www.thomsonreuters.com.

About NPR

NPR is an award-winning, multimedia news organization and an influential force in American life. In collaboration with more than 900 independent public radio stations nationwide, NPR strives to create a more informed public – one challenged and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas and cultures.

SOURCE Thomson Reuters